Of Diamonds and Devils Part 2 Respites End
by Joseph Kursk
Summary: When Sokka suddenly finds he possess bending abilities while camping with the others he starts to think that the playing field is leveling. However, with the reintroduction of Joshua along with two of his goons the gang must not only discover what has happened to Sokka over the past six months, but also what their dastardly foe wants with him.
1. Hatred, It's a Friend Thing

**Chapter XI**

**Six Months Later**

"I hate you."

"Come on, that's not fair. I just wanted you to come along."

"I can't believe you talked me into this."

"Just try to have some fun. It's been six months since we've been together."

"I hate you."

"Yes, as you have previously stated, I realize that. Now can you please come out and join the rest of us for breakfast?"

"Why? I don't want to see him. Tell me when he's gone."

"Toph! Get out here now!" There was a sigh behind the stone wall, a moment later the earth crumbling into the ground. Toph stood before him, brushing dirt off herself as she rose, dressed in her normal attire, including golden necklace. She walked past him, grumbling something or another.

"Thank you." He said, exasperated. Zuko walked behind her, shaking his head. That girl was so stubborn. Dealing with Azula seemed like a treat compared to her. Not only did he have to beg her to come along on this vacation but he also had to convince her to stay, twice. They had only been here for three days! He was really beginning to wonder whether or not it was all worth it.

Coming back around to the little campfire, he settled down, sitting on a log, his feet resting in the cool sand. He looked out over the shimmering lake, a slight mist hanging over its bright blue hue as the morning sun crested over the mountains, glowing a dim yellow. A gentle breeze blew across his face, rustling the pines around them and giving a serene feeling to the whole scene. The people in it, however, destroyed it. Jack, already in a heated argument, continued to escalate things by jabbing the smaller man in the chest.

"You need to clean up your act buddy." Growled Jack.

Sokka brushed the finger away, snorting as he stood up. "I do what I want, when I want, and wherever I want. Nobody's going to stop me, so get the idea out of your head." Said Sokka as he walked off, everyone watching him in stone silence as he left. Jack shook with rage, stocking off in the opposite direction, leaving the others to sit around the campfire and eat their breakfast in silence. Eventually Zuko spoke, hoping to ease the tensions.

"So, what do you guys want to do today?" He asked. Toph huffed.

"Go home." She said. Zuko frowned, staring at her as she began to munch on her bowl of noodles. Mai came over next to him, sitting down with her own bowl of noodles resting between her bare fingers. She was not wearing her gloves.

"I say we go and explore the mountain. I think there might be some crystal caverns." She said. Ty-Lee perked up, a smile spreading across her face.

"Ohh! I'd love to see some crystal caverns!" Azula smirked.

"I'm sure you would. Maybe you could find some lovers crystals and enchant him back to you." Ty-Lee frowned, her eyes lowering as shame overcame her face.

Zuko looked over at her sister, watching as she brushed a strand of raven black hair behind her ear. She was wearing it straight down today. "You know Azula, you could try being forgiving of her, like we are towards you. Just a thought." He said. Azula shrugged.

"Forgiveness is a fool's utensil. Why forgive someone only to let them betray you once more?" She said, looking at her nails. Ty-Lee stood up, marching off with a tear inching down her face. Zuko glared at his sister.

"Happy now?" Azula lowered her gaze.

"I'm never happy Zuzu." She replied, picking up a stick and drawing something in the sand. Zuko shook his head, sighing.

"This was a bad idea." He muttered to himself. Mai laid a reassuring hand on his shoulder, leaning in and giving him a kiss on his cheek.

"Don't worry, you'll figure it out." She said, demonstrating some of her recent found affection. Zuko nodded his head solemnly, looking over to Katara as she handed Aang his bowl, the two silent.

The excursion thus far had been a complete disaster. He had intended to bring everybody together for a relaxing week before the big summer political push came around. They were going to camp in one of the more secluded places in the Earth-Kingdom, allowing them to be distant from all their duties and troubles and ails, if only for a time. However, it seemed that it might have been better to have never embarked on this expedition.

No sooner had they all gathered here than Toph and Sokka had gotten into a fight, yelling profanities at each other and storming off. That had followed with a scuffle between Katara and Jack as they started sorting out their differences, then Sokka came back and made Ty-Lee cry by telling everyone around the campfire that he and she had done it together before he had left for Ba Sing Sey. Of course Azula could not well enough leave it alone and had since pestered Ty-Lee, harping her for her lapse in judgment.

The trip was meant to unite them, but instead it was separating them even worse, and if what Joshua had told him was true they were halfway until he returned. They were running out of time. He had wanted to speak to them about their problem, but they were so divided at the moment that talking as a group was impossible, let alone discussing a sensitive topic on their approach to stopping Joshua.

Sighing, he turned his attention back to the group, watching them as they ate silently, no doubt all wishing that the trip was over. "I think that a trip to the mountain would be great." He said, trying to smile. "Who all wants to come?" No body moved, Katara shuffling back to the pot.

He turned to Toph, who sat on the ground with her arms crossed. "Come on Toph, don't you want to go feel the sights in the mountain?" She snorted in reply, sinking deeper into her pout.

"Sokka won't be there." He continued, making her sit up.

"All right, I'm in." Katara came over and handed Toph another bowl, taking the empty one away. She turned to Zuko.

"I think I'll stay here. I want to talk to my brother." She said, her voice weary.

"I'll stay with Katara." Added Aang, looking into his bowl. Zuko nodded his head.

"Well, as fun as it would be to go with you Zuzu, I think I'll stay in camp, they might need me." Zuko frowned at his sister.

"You don't have a choice. You're coming with." He stated. Azula stuck her tongue out at him, crossing her arms and leaning back. Zuko shook his head. In the past six months she had tried to escape twenty-three times and instilled six different coups. They had all failed, of course, mainly because of the total lack of support from anybody; apparently nobody wanted her back in charge. He had had her thrown back in prison for a couple of stints, and had even gone so far as to have her lashed with a cane after the last coup, but she always managed to find her way back to the palace, where either Mai, Ty-Lee, or Jack was by her side, keeping watch and trying to rehabilitate her. It seemed to be working, at least a little.

The group finished their meal, handing their bowls back to Katara with a nod of thanks. While the others prepared their packs Zuko went off to find Jack to see if he wanted to come along, but he could not find him anywhere. Coming back to camp he grabbed his own pack and turned to Katara and Aang one last time.

"Sure you guys don't want to come along? It's going to be a good time." He said, trying to sound as positive as possible. Katara shook her head, Aang hesitating for a moment only to follow suit. Zuko sighed.

"Alright. Have a good time." He said, turning and starting off, making his path along the lake towards the mountain.

Azula looked at them for a moment, opening her mouth as if to speak, but then she shut it, thinking better of it. She turned and followed the others, Toph bringing up the rear.

They hiked through the sand at first, keeping next to the lake, the cool mist settling in amongst them and chilling them slightly. The water lapped soothingly at the beach, flowing and ebbing with each little wave.

Along the way they came across Ty-Lee, sitting on a rock next to the lake, her bare feet dipped into the water. Her eyes were red as she looked away, averting her gaze. Zuko came up and asked if she was okay, to which she merely replied with a quick nod. Sighing, Zuko looked back at his sister, motioning with his head towards Ty-Lee. Azula, however, merely crossed her arms and turned away, refusing to apologize.

Shaking his head, he gave Ty-Lee one last reassuring pat on the shoulder then turned around, continuing on in his hike.

The group made their way away from the lake and through the pines, the needles rustling gently in the breeze, their fresh scent wafting up to them. Their footsteps were followed by a slight crunch as they stepped on the greens underfoot.

By the time they reached the base of the mountains the sun was already creeping over it, casting its warm rays out into the forest. It sparkled off of the lake, blinding Zuko as he looked back over at the camp. He could see the little wisps of smoke that indicated their campfire, small dots moving along the shoreline. It looked as if someone was going to go for a swim.

Turning back around, he began the hike up the mountain, Mai coming along beside him. They walked together, the going easy at first but growing increasingly difficult as they got higher. Eventually they were full out climbing, using hands and feet to scale up the rocky wall.

Azula called out from below them. "This is your idea of fun, Zuzu!?" Some loose rocks clattered down below him as his hand slipped. A few of them fell on Azula, making her scowl.

"Actually yes, this is my idea of fun." He replied, a slight smile on his face. His time with his Uncle pursuing the avatar as well as fleeing from Azula had created a greater appreciation for the natural wonders of the world. Though he would not admit it, he sometimes longed for the simpler days of just surviving with his Uncle, at least then he had to only watch out for one psychopath.

They continued up, the wind growing in strength the higher they went. When he looked back down once more he saw the entire of their little valley, the trees spreading further back to the edge of the mountains, which made the bowl that they camped in. The lake dazzled below, shimmering and shifting slightly. It was rather serene, peaceful, like a…

"Zuzu, I'm tired of climbing, why don't we take a break." Zuko frowned, drawn out from his thoughts of serenity.

He looked down at Azula, Toph right behind her. "How about it Toph? Think you could manage something?" He asked. Toph snorted.

She rammed her fist against the wall, a large platform coming out beneath her. "Think I can manage something." She mimicked as she stepped down. Azula climbed down, brushing dirt and grim off of her traveling outfit. Mai jumped, making Zuko's heart leap for a moment before he saw her land safely on the platform next to Toph. As for himself he merely climbed down, taking a seat against the mountainside.

Azula craned her head up, looking towards the top of the mountain. "When are we going to reach the top Zuzu?" She asked. Zuko shrugged his shoulders in response.

"We'll get there when we get there." He said. Azula trained her golden eyes on him, the pupils dilating for a moment. She seem to phase out for a second, her hand twitching, but she regained herself, brushing her hair behind her ear.

"You know mother used to say that." She said. Zuko grunted.

"Don't I know it. You never stopped asking." He said. Azula waved him off, walking over to Toph.

"Earthbender, why don't you take us to the top?" She said.

Toph crossed her arms, a smirk on her face. "Where's your sense of adventure princess? I thought you were miss do it yourself." Zuko could not help but crack a grin, chuckling slightly.

"She's not a princess anymore Toph, she was stripped of her standing." Said Mai, looking out over the valley. Azula scowled at Mai, crossing her arms and walking over to the edge of the platform, her head titled down towards the lake.

"Why is she even here Zuko?" Asked Toph, jabbing a thumb behind her at Azula.

Zuko continued to watch his sister, seeing if she would move. "This is a trip of family and friends. Why wouldn't she be here?" Azula remained motionless, continuing to look down below her. Toph grunted.

"Well, I can guess which one she is." Said the earthbender, reaching a hand down and itching her rump. Zuko tried to not laugh at the sight, glad to see Toph finally starting to settle down a little.

After a few more minutes of idle chatter the group decided to go on, turning back to the mountain and resuming their climb. The going was arduous, and twice Zuko slipped. Luckily, Toph was ready, using her Earthbending to secure him to the mountainside.

"Geesh Zuko, I thought you were good at this stuff." Said Toph after the second slip. Zuko grunted, securing his footing once more.

"I was just testing to make sure you were paying attention." He said, hauling himself up. Toph actually laughed, a reassuring sound.

Eventually Zuko reached the top, hauling himself up to a flatter area, a little mound rising up further away. He turned around and offered his hand to Mai, who looked at for a moment then took it. He helped her up, receiving a quick kiss on the cheek for his chivalry. He turned back down to help Azula up, but she smacked his hand away in disgust, making her own way up. Toph was the last one, accepting his hand just for the thought of the action.

Once they were all at the top they turned and looked out, marveling at the gorgeous sight of the rich valley beneath them. The entire land was undisturbed, void of any human activity aside from the splashing by camp. It was truly beautiful.

Mai's hand dropped down and took his, her eyes wide as she looked out over the scene. "How did Aang find this place?" She asked. Zuko shook his head.

"He said that he was flying past one time and noticed the lake." Mai continued to look out over the lake.

"Well, I'm glad he found it." She said, turning and brushing her lips against his. Zuko turned to her in an embrace, letting his lips meet hers. He pressed against her tight, the warmth of her lips merging with his own. They were disrupted by a shaking beneath their feet as thunder clapped in their ears. Zuko whirled to see Azula, her fingers jabbed up at the sky, smoke rising up as the last of her lightning dissipated.

He frowned.

"Ohh, sorry Zuzu, were you having a moment?" Said his sister, feigning remorse. "I just wanted to let the others know we had made it up here safe and sound." She continued, smirking. A moment later she sank into the ground with a cry, her waist being caught by the stone. She struggled to move, pushing against the ground.

"Whoops." Said Toph, standing behind them. "Were you having a moment? Sorry, I should have let you gloat a bit more." She said, coming up alongside Mai and Zuko. They all shared a short laugh, Azula giving them the best scowl she could muster.

"Alright, you've had your fun. No get me out of here!" She said, slamming her palm against the ground for emphasis. Toph turned to Zuko.

"I don't know Fire-Lord, she is your prisoner. Shall I remove her?"

Zuko began to stroke his chin, pretending to ponder the idea. "I don't rightly know. She does seem to be a lot calmer down there." He said, watching as flames began to play at his sister's fingertips. He turned to Mai.

"What do you think?" Mai shrugged her shoulders.

"I think that it's a safe place to keep her."

Azula growled at them. "Zuko, get me out of here, now!" Zuko pretended to be shocked.

"Me, help you? But that wouldn't do. Azula doesn't need help from anyone, let alone her big brother." He said.

"Fine, you know what, you're right. You, earthbender, get me out of here." Toph ignored her, picking her nose instead.

"Earthbender!" Barked Azula. Zuko chuckled.

"You know Azula, she has a name." Azula groaned, rolling her eyes.

"Toph, would you please aid me in getting out of here?" She asked, false sincerity playing at the lilt of her voice. Toph stirred, turning to Azula.

"What? Ohh, you want help?" She said, walking over to Azula. She grabbed the princess by the hair, stomping on the ground and pulling her out.

"There you go kid." Said Toph, walking back over to Zuko. Azula stood up, brushing herself off with an incredulous look.

"Really funny, Zuzu, really funny." Azula crossed her arms, looking out over the valley.

"You know, earthbender, you really are missing out on some marvelous sights. I almost feel bad for you." She said, trying to irk the girl. Toph laughed in response.

"You feel bad for me? You guys are the one missing out on the beautiful sights." She said. Zuko turned to her.

"What do you mean?" He asked. Toph tapped the ground with her feet.

"This mountain is full of winding tunnels, crossing and flowing through each other. It's almost like a river. There's even crystals down there, they're vibrating. I've never felt anything like it" Azula turned back around, looking at Toph.

"Vibrating crystals, hmm? Do you mind leading us down there?"

* * *

><p>Sokka swam in the lake, his limber form cutting through the water with the natural athleticism that was granted him. His sleek muscles shimmered in the water, cycling below and above the water. A few times he dove down beneath, swimming as far below as he could in the deep lake, coming back up to shake his head free of the water. He ran a hand over his nose, sniffling softly, happy that the water masked his tears.<p>

What the heck had he been doing? His whole world was upside down, set to burn to the ground and he was just about to light it. He had ruined almost everything in his personal life over the past six months; his friendships, his credibility, and even his own self-esteem. No longer did he suffer bouts of depression. Not saying that he didn't have depression, but rather that a bout would constitute an end to the feeling for a time. Now he merely felt a constant hollowness plaguing him, making hatred come forth from him in every action. He hated the world, he hated all the people in it, and above all he hated himself.

His diplomatic career at Ba Sing Sey thus far was the stuff of legend. In a whirlwind he had managed to establish good repute with the Earth-King and Zuko, allowing the nations to discuss their plans to settle the flaring tempers. He had also managed to negotiate trading agreements between the Northern and Southern Watertribes as well as the Earth-King. At the moment he was waiting for Zuko to muster the necessary approval in his court to push the agreement through the Fire-Nation, but it was slow going with all the old hostilities.

And as for the Harmony Restoration Movement, well, it was a giant success. He personally had established the system and means by which the Fire-Nation colonist were transported back as well as a reimbursement system that paid them for any values or holdings they were losing with the move. He was extremely popular, extremely influential, and the talk of any town he entered. However, he was always careful not to stay too long, lest they discover his less amiable qualities.

Going for another dive, Sokka went deep, gazing around at the dark blue water around him. He reached for the bottom, his lungs burning as he pushed himself lower and lower. Eventually he brushed the ground, the cold silt resting on the mud slimy against his bare fingers. He lingered for a moment, his body writhing at the lack of oxygen, but his mind peaceful. Pain was one of the few things that cleared his thoughts; it allowed him to think once more like he used to, cutting through all the garbage that lay about in his head. It was nice, calming. He wished that he could stay down at the bottom of the lake forever, just resting in the waters bosom, safe from his mistakes and faults, but the pain in his lungs eventually forced him up. He pushed off, shooting up through the water and back to the surface, gasping for air as he broke through.

He looked back over to shore, noticing that the camp was deserted for the moment. Hi stomach growled at him, demanding food.

"Alright, alright. I'll sneak in and grab something real quick, then I'm back out here." He said, swimming off to shore. He got out of the water, his legs a bit shaky as he stepped back on solid land. He walked over to some of the supplies, rooting through them and grabbing some nuts and seal-jerky. Munching on them, he went over to a log by the lake, sitting down with a sigh. He looked out over the calm waters, wishing that his mind reflected the same state.

"Sokka?" He turned around to see Aang and Katara coming back from the woods, their arms loaded with branches and twigs. A flash of red crossed his vision.

He turned back around, gnawing on his food. "What the hell do you want?" He said around a mouthful of nuts. He heard some hushed tones, then his sister came over to him, Aang departing somewhere else. She set her bundle of wood down by the dead fire, sitting by Sokka.

"Can we talk?" She asked, concern filling her voice. Sokka grunted.

"Isn't that what we're doing?" He said, taking another bite from his seal-jerky. Katara shifted, rubbing her hands on her knees.

"Look, I know that it hasn't been easy since Suki's passed on, but I'm really getting worried about you." She started. Sokka stood up, rolling his eyes.

"Again, sis, with the whole nurturing thing! Did you ever think about the fact that I'm the older brother? That I'm supposed to be looking out for you, not the other way around!"

"Sokka, I know you're upset, but sometimes the little sibling is supposed to help out the older one." She said, looking up at him with her big blue eyes.

He looked at her, her soft features breaking through to him for a moment, but the red returned, stronger than before. "No, you've always tried to look after me. You won't let me do anything for you because I'm not bender." He said, crossing his arms.

"That's not true Sokka." Replied his sister. "You saved me from the Earth-Kingdom prison, remember?" Sokka shook his head.

"I remember that you almost killed me before it all happened. And that when I finally did get you there wasn't so much as a thank you for it." Katara stood up, her cheeks flushing with anger.

"That's not fair Sokka! I was appreciative!"

Sokka grunted. "Ohh ya? Then why didn't you ever say as much?" Katara looked at him, trying to find the right response.

"I was busy healing you, and Jack." She said. "I guess I was just too consumed with saving your life to say thanks." Sokka rolled his eyes.

"Ohh, look, let's turn this back to you! Never mind that I saved you from torture and death from Azula, how about we talk about how you healed me after crushing my ribs!"

"I said I was sorry!"

"And ohh, how sorry you were! You sure did a great job expressing it!" Katara threw up her hands, turning and marching away with a suppressed scream. She turned back around, taking in a deep breath.

"Sokka, I don't want to fight you." She started.

Sokka went ahead and stopped her right there, not in the mood to listen to one of her lectures. "Look sis, I'm just going to let you go here because you're my kin and all. But I'm sick and tired of you trying to run my life. Do it again and you'll regret it." He said, shoving a finger in her face. Katara shook with rage, watching him as he stared her down.

"Understand?" He demanded. Tears started dripping down his sister's face as she fought with her struggling emotions. She slowly nodded her head, keeping her mouth shut.

Sokka lowered his hand. "Good. Now go be a good woman and prepare something to eat." He said, turning and throwing his food on the ground. He walked back out into the water, diving in and swimming off away from shore.

Once he was back in the middle of the lake he turned around, looking at Katara as she stared out after him, her arms crossed. He could not tell from this distance, but he was fairly certain that she was crying. He shook his head as he calmed down once more.

Great, just add her to the list of people that he disappointed or hurt. It was just getting larger and larger, wasn't it? First Toph, then Ty-Lee, then thirty or so different girls in the Earth-Kingdom, Aang, Jack, Zuko, and now his sister. Sure sounded like a great list, maybe he could expand it a bit more and include his father, his mother, and his two dead girlfriends. Maybe he could meet their spirits and shame them somehow, that would be just great.

Sokka shook his head, turning over to his back and letting the water carry him. He floated for a while, trying to forget all of his troubles. After a time, however, something began to nag at him. In the pit of his stomach he felt a pull, somewhere over by the mountains. He turned and looked at them, the strange sensation growing.

He looked at the grey stone, a queer feeling telling him of nearby danger. It felt similar to that feeling of dread he had when climbing out of the tunnel. There was something over there, something he needed to see, something dangerous.

Drawn to it with some unnatural urge, he swam over to the edge of the lake, drying off and grabbing his gear, intending to march straight over to the source and discover what was going on. Right as he was slipping on his boots Katara showed up once more.

She stood at the opening of his tent, her hands clutched together. "Sokka." She said softly. "Can we talk, please?" He froze, his left boot in his hand. A patch of red tried to cross his vision, but the sincerity and pain that he heard in his sister's voice drove it off. He remained himself, for the moment.

"Ya, come on in." He said, slipping his other boot on. He turned to her, the two sitting down cross-legged on his sleeping mat.

"I see you still haven't washed your funky smelling sleeping mat." Said Katara, offering a slight chuckle. Sokka returned it with a soft smile.

"Ya, well, it reminds me of some good times." He said, running his hand along the filthy mat. Katara took in a deep breath, looking down at the ground.

"Sokka, I'm scared for you." She said simply, her voice choking with emotion. Sokka looked at her in surprise.

"Scared?" He said. Katara nodded her head.

"Ever since you came out of that cave you haven't been the same. You different, more bitter, less caring. You don't get along with anyone anymore and you don't make any jokes. I'm worried." Sokka could feel something crawling up his spine. A wave of red overtook his vision, but he forced it back down, suppressing the rising rage.

He looked at his sister, at her pained face. He could tell that he had hurt her deeply not only with what he said but also with what he had done. "Katara, I…" He cut off, not knowing what to say.

"Sokka, you're not you!" Cried his sister, standing up. "Sleeping around? Swearing, drinking, when has that ever been you? When have you ever let yourself fall to such a state?" Sokka could feel something crawl up into his head, trying to force the rage on him, but he battled it off.

"Katara, I… I just don't know." He said, the confusion making him panic.

Katara leaned towards him. "What is it? Why are you doing all these things? Let me help you, just tell me what it is!"

Sokka shook his head, the confusion clouding his mind. "I…I don't know." What was wrong with him? Why was he acting this way?

"Is it me?" Asked Katara.

"No, it's not you." He replied, standing up and pushing his way out of the tent. He needed fresh air. His sister followed him.

"Then what Sokka, tell me!" Sokka began to breathe heavily, his chest rising and falling as emotions swirled in his chest. His hands began to shake by his side.

"Was it Suki?" Asked Katara. Sokka shook his head.

"No!"

"Aang, Jack, Zuko?"

"No, no, no!"

"Then who? Dad? Mom?" Sokka began to shake, his vision turning crimson. He tried to fight it off as best he could, to suppress the inner rage, but it was becoming too much for him.

"No, it wasn't them." He managed, his breath ragged. He looked at Katara, trying to remain calm.

She came up to him, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Was it Toph?" She asked softly, her big blue eyes turning blood red in his sight. He snapped, the name bringing up within him such ambivalence that he struck his sister with the back of his hand, sending her to the ground.

"Don't say that name!" He yelled, pointing a finger at his sister. "Don't you ever say that mutt's name in my presence again! I should have left her to die in that damned tunnel six months ago!" He yelled. Katara picked herself up out of the sand, her face burning bright red.

"Sokka! What in the world is wrong with you? How in the world can you say that about Toph?!" Demanded his sister. Sokka took another swing at her, missing as Katara ducked underneath it and got behind him, pushing him.

"Sokka, cool it!" She yelled, water whipping out into her hands. Sokka whirled on her, spit coming out of his mouth as he breathed.

"Dammit, you going to try and kill me again, huh sis?" He said, reaching his hand down and pulling out his boomerang. Katara shot a whip of water at his hand, but he leapt over it, throwing his boomerang at his sister.

Katara rolled beneath the boomerang as it cut through the air above her head, getting back to her feet and shooting a column of water at her brother. Sokka, weaponless, held out his hands and braced for impact.

As the water crashed into him he whirled his hands around, spinning and thrusting them back out at his sister. The water followed the path of his hands and came crashing into Katara, knocking her back with her wide eyes and sending her flying into the lake where she landed with a great splash.

Sokka stood for a moment, stunned. He looked down at his hands, not a drop of water on them. Katara drug herself from the lake, bending the water off of herself, looking at her brother with a bewildered expression. Sokka looked up, utterly confused.

"What the hell?!" He stared at his hands, then back up at Katara.

She stood there, shocked. "Sokka, what happened?" He shook his head slowly, panic welling up inside his chest. What was happening to him?

Katara took a step towards him, but he turned and ran, sprinting away from her into the forest. She gave chase, calling after him, but his long legs easily outpaced her and soon he was far away from her.

He kept moving, running on and on, crashing through the forest. He stumbled through underbrush, breaking branches and trampling through just about anything that got in his way. He was hyperventilating, and he knew it, his actions becoming more and more panicked. Eventually he stumbled and fell, landing in a pile of needles and pinecones. He tried to move forward further, but all he could manage was rolling over to his back as he gasped for air. He looked up into the blue sky, lifting his hands before them, watching as they shook in his sight. What had happened!?

Sokka regained control of himself, calming his palpitating heart and sitting up. He could feel himself on the verge of tears, the confusion upsetting him so. How had that happened? He wasn't a bender! Never was, never would be. Then how in the world had he shot that water back at his sister? Maybe he was just hallucinating or something. Ya, that was it. Katara had actually smashed him against a tree or something and now he was out cold. She was probably healing him right now, he'd wake up in a bit with a blinding headache and a pain in his chest but he'd be fine.

He looked around, expecting the forest around him to crumble as he realized his folly, but it did not move, save to shift with the breeze. A small furry creature rushed through the underbrush, stopping before him and wrinkling its nose. It bared its fangs at him then dashed off back the way it came. Apparently animals didn't like him either.

Sokka snorted, regaining his composure. Alright, what exactly had happened back there? He and Katara were talking, then they were fighting, and then he was bending. Was that possible?

He shook his head. No, it couldn't be. There was no way for someone without bending to acquire bending, it was that simple. However, his senses were telling him differently. He could feel the water around him, the particles rushing through the trees and resting in the needles. It was in the air, in the ground, all around him.

Reaching out a hand, he thought of taking a ball of water in his grasp, the water accumulating in his palm a moment later. He leapt back with a cry, letting the water fall to the ground where it splashed into the dirt.

He chuckled to himself, wiping his hand on his pant leg. "Okay, okay, Sokka, don't panic. Some water just fell from one of the tress, that's all." He said, looking up at the pines above him. He marched further off, coming to a little spring. Taking in a deep breath, he thought about pulling the water, making it swirl around him in a vortex of sorts. With a fluid movement he made the motion, a column of crystal clear water following. It moved about with his hands, spiraling around his body and arching over his head. He breathed onto it, freezing it into an arch above him.

"What in the world?" He said to himself, running a hand along the frozen liquid. He blew on it again, and it came crashing down to the ground, splashing him. He groaned as it soaked him, annoyed that he hadn't thought about that. Suddenly it struck him to just bend it off. Flicking his wrists forward, he shot the water off, the water particles becoming shards of ice and imbedding themselves into the trees around him.

He whistled. "Wow, that looks dangerous. I need to be more careful with this." He said, looking down at his hands. It was strange, this new power that coursed through him. He felt the strength to do many things, to be someone great. But there was something else about it, something, unnatural. For some reason it reminded him of death. He needed to get rid of this, it wasn't his to keep.

"But why should I get rid of this?" He asked himself. Why indeed? Everyone else could bend. And now that he could bend too, wouldn't that make things more even? No longer would he have to rely on others for help. He wouldn't have to just make plans for others to execute, he could do them himself. And as for his sister, well, she wouldn't dare boss him around now that he could bend. He'd be so good that even Aang wouldn't want to mess with him.

"Sokka, master waterbender. That's got a nice ring." He said. There was something else, something tugging inside of him, pulling him to the mountains in the east. Turning towards them, he clenched his fists. There was something over there, something dangerous, he just knew it. He was going to go after it, and with his newfound power, he was fairly certain he could handle anything that came at him. Forget boomerang guy, he was going to be a bender.

* * *

><p>"What are they doing?"<p>

"Gosh! Do you ever shut up!? They're doing nothing. Five minutes ago, when you asked me, they were doing nothing! Five minutes later when they're still doing nothing and you ask, I'll tell you they're doing nothing!" The man, or boy, as he seemed between ages, sighed, shaking his head and placing a spyglass back to his eye.

"Why do you think they're doing nothing?" Asked his companion. The man groaned, turning around to look at the sixteen year old.

"Lee, just shut up, would you? Please?" The boy named Lee frowned, his brown hair blowing back in the wind to reveal a blue arrow on his forehead.

"But Sangee." The man raised his hand, dark blue runes and spirals tattooed over his fingers.

"Lee, what did I tell you about calling me that?" The boy rolled his eyes.

"Come on Sangee, we've been sitting up here for three days! Why can't we just go down and take them out? It's so boring up here." The man shook his head.

"Lee, you've got to be more patient." He started, but the boy cut him off.

"But we can take them now! Let's just sneak down there then batta-bing, batta-boom, they're knocked out and everything's all good!" The man called Sangee stood up, brushing the dirt off of his grey cloak.

"Lee, you know why we can't go down there right now. We need to wait a bit longer." The younger man groaned.

"Sangee, come on! Why do we have to listen to Joshua? He just wants them out of the way. If we capture them all right now, wouldn't that take them out of the way?" Sangee shook his head, tucking the spyglass into one of his sleeves.

He raised his hand at Lee, holding up a single finger. "First off, we were ordered to wait until the fourth night, which is tonight, and then slip this in their meal." He said, holding up a vial of clear liquid.

"Second." Continue Sangee, holding up a second finger. "If we were to go down there now there's no saying that we would be able to take them out. They're all powerful benders and it's only the two of us." Lee wobbled his head.

"Come on bro, you're like the biggest, baddest, bender ever." Said the younger man, punching Sangee on the arm.

Sangee grinned. "That may be true, but that still does not negate the fact that we were ordered to wait and not engage until after we slip this into their meal. And even after that we only grab the girl, no one else." Lee looked past his brother and out into the valley.

"Which girl was that again?" Asked the younger boy. Sangee turned around, taking the spyglass out once more and looking through it.

"The one with raven black hair and golden eyes."

"Ohh ya! Joshua said that we'd recognize her by the condescending attitude that rolls off of her." Sangee nodded his head.

"Yup, that would be it." The two settled in once more, staring out over the valley. Sangee stared at the commotion in the camp, watching as a fight broke out between two people. One of them was tossed out and into the lake, the other standing and staring at his hands. A man, clothed in blue and white. He could feel his heart leap. Was that the non-bender? What was he doing here?!

Sangee stood up, leaning further to try and make out the figure, pressing the spyglass firmly against his eye. After a few more moments he lowered it.

"San-Lee, come here." He called. The younger boy groaned, rolling over and walking over to him.

"What's up bro?" Asked San-Lee. Sangee handed his brother the eyeglass.

He pointed out over to the camp. "That one there, isn't that the man from the cave?" San-Lee put the glass to his eye, sitting still. After a while of him not saying anything Sangee started getting impatient.

"Well?" He demanded, waiting for his little brother's response.

San-Lee nodded his head. "Ohh ya, definitely. That guy totally looks like the one we threw in that tunnel. Uhuh, no doubt about it."

"You don't see him do you?"

San-Lee smiled, chuckling slightly. "I really don't know how to use one of these." Said the little brother. "I honestly don't know what I'm looking at right now." Sangee smacked himself.

"You're kidding me! It's just point and look! How can you mess that up?" His little brother turned to him.

"Well sorry, but I didn't get to practice with it for the past three days."

"It's point and look!" Yelled back Sangee. "Just point it at the camp and look through it!" San-Lee turned back around muttering and putting the spyglass to his eye once more.

"You know San-Jin, you promised mother you wouldn't yell at me so much." Griped the little brother. San-Jin rolled his eyes.

"And you promised mother that you wouldn't be so annoying." He retorted. "It's nice to know that we both broke our deathbed promises." San-Lee did not reply, staring through the spyglass in cold silence. After a while his face lit up.

"Wow." Said the boy, whistling a beautiful note. San-Jin stepped up.

"Do you see him? Is it him?" He asked. The little brother shook his head.

"No, but man is she pretty! I didn't think I liked girls, but I might just change my mind now." San-Jin snatched the spyglass from his brother.

He raised it up to his eye. "What are you talking about?" He snapped, scanning the area. He came across a girl in a pink outfit, standing in camp, her brown hair braided down her back. Looking around, he tried to find the man he had spotted earlier, but he was gone. He lowered the spyglass slowly, turning to his younger brother.

"You've got to be kidding me." San-Lee offered him a coy smile.

"She's cute, right?" San-Jin smacked his brother upside the head.

"You were supposed to see whether or not that guy was the one from the cave! He's not supposed to be here!" San-Lee shrugged.

"Not my fault he walked away before I could find him."

"If you had just looked at the camp in the first place." Replied San-Jin.

"Coulda shoulda woulda, it's all said and done now. Can't do anything about it. Do you think it was the guy from the cave?" San-Jin shook his head.

"I don't know, I didn't get to see his face." He replied. San-Lee sucked at his cheek for a moment.

"Perhaps we should ask Xian whether or not the guy's where he's supposed to be." San-Jin nodded his head. Once in a while his brother pulled through.

"Good idea, send out a messenger hawk and ask." He said, settling himself back down on the mountain, scanning the land for any sign of the mystery man. He heard San-Lee moving about behind him, the screech of a hawk echoing around them a little while later. The boy came back over, sitting down behind him, crossing his legs.

"So." Started San-Lee, a smile in his voice. "What are they doing?"


	2. Open System Closed System

**Chapter XII**

By the time that they had finally reached camp night had fallen. They had spent the rest of the day exploring the caverns inside the mountain, the shining crystals radiating in different hues, vibrating slightly. They had eaten in a wide cavern with blue and silver crystals, munching and talking excitedly about what these crystals were and where they had come from. Azula had been the only one to remain silent, an inquisitive look across her face the entire time. Whenever he had asked her what it was she found so interesting she remained silent, so he finally gave up. Now, back at camp, their adventurous afternoon continued with a new development.

"He did what?!" Exclaimed Zuko, not believing his ears. Katara stood before them, dinner brewing over the campfire a little further behind them.

"I told you; he bent the water back at me!" She said. "We had gotten into a fight, then he pulled his boomerang on me. I was trying to restrain him, but when I shot the column of water at him he bent it and threw it back at me, knocking me into the lake." Zuko shook his head. There was no way.

"You had to be mistaken Katara." Said Mai. Toph merely snorted.

"Great, that's just what he needs at the moment. Being able to bend." Zuko looked around the camp, noticing Jack and Ty-Lee talking over by the lake. Aang was over with Appa, laughing and doing some weird airbending trick. Sokka was nowhere in sight.

He turned back to Katara, looking at her sincere expression. "If he did bend, then where is he? I'd like to see this." He said. Katara's eyes fell, putting her hands together.

"He ran off." She said. Toph grunted.

"Ain't that convenient?" Said the grouchy earthbender. "You know I bet you're making this up just because he beat you with his boomerang. Again!" Katara scowled at her.

"He didn't beat me with his boomerang, Toph! I have it right here." She said, shoving it in Toph's face. Toph smacked it away, pushing Katara back with her palm.

"Watch it Sugar-Queen." Katara's face turned bright red, her mouth flying up for a response.

Zuko took the opportunity to step in between the two. "Knock it off, both of you!" He barked. "Toph, why don't you go see what Jack and Ty-Lee are doing, hmm?" Toph blew some black hair away from her eyes, storming off through the sand and over to where the others were at. Katara watched her as she went, sticking her tongue out.

"Katara." Said Zuko. She turned back to him.

"Sorry." She mumbled. Mai and Azula stood by his side, watching him. He could feel their eyes burning into his back, making him uncomfortable. He tried to talk to Katara, but he just felt too uneasy.

He turned around, looking at them. "Uhh, can you girls leave us alone?" He asked. Azula shrugged her shoulders, walking away towards the lake, whistling, her hands behind her back. Mai grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze, turning and walking off after Azula.

Zuko turned back around to Katara, motioning ahead of them towards the campfire. "Shall we?" He asked. Katara nodded.

They walked over to the fire, the soup boiling in the pot. A sweet, meaty, aroma rose up to greet him, making his stomach growl. Somewhere off in the forest a twig snapped, night creatures crawling about.

Katara picked up a spoon, mixing the boiling ingredients. "I'm not lying." She started. "He really did bend at me. Don't bother asking me how." She said, catching him before he could ask. "But he did. Got a couple of bruises to prove it."

Zuko walked over, leaning over the pot and taking in a deep breath. "Alright, he bent at you. Why were you fighting in the first place?" He asked. Katara began taking out bowls, ladling the soup in. She handed one of them to Zuko.

"I wanted to talk to him about all the stuff he's gotten into in Ba Sin Sey." She said. "I'm worried about him." Zuko sat down cross-legged in the dirt, holding his bowl and blowing on it. He waited until Katara walked off and handed out the rest of the bowls, sipping at the sweet brew until she came beside him.

"It's a bit sweet." She said after she had tried it. "I don't remember adding this much sugar-cane." Zuko took another sip, his fingertips beginning to buzz.

"I think it's fine." He said, the tingling sensation spreading to his feet. "Now tell me, what has Sokka been getting up to these past few months?" Katara sighed, setting her glass bowl down in the dirt.

"What hasn't he done?" She began. "I can't tell you how many different women he's been with. He gets drunk every night, and then he swears at me and Aang whenever we come over for a visit." Zuko sighed, closing his eyes.

"I had heard rumors from my advisors, but I always thought they were just slander against him. He's not exactly popular in my court." He said. It was hard for his nobles to accept a water-tribe emissary, especially one so young. However, Sokka was so fluent in tongue and confident in his plans that he won many over, though there was still a contingent that held out against him. Zuko had always hoped that the rumors were just grumblings from the holdouts. Apparently not.

"When did this start?" He asked. Katara shook her head, sipping at her bowl of soup.

"I don't know. Toph was the one with him when they went on their climb, and he won't talk about his time in the tunnel, so I don't even know what's causing it!" She said, her voice filled with emotion. "I don't know whether it's Suki's death, or the tunnel, or something totally different! And since he won't talk, and Toph won't talk, I can't figure anything out! And he just keeps getting worse." Katara brought her knees up to her chest, hugging them. She stared into the fire, her eyes reflecting the crackling tongues.

Zuko set his blue bowl down, stretching his legs out. "Toph and he had a falling out of sorts, but she won't tell me. Do you have any idea what happened?" He asked. Katara shook her head, her brown hair sitting on her shoulders.

"All I know is that the day he woke up he demanded that Aang take him to Ba Sin Sey. I just thought that he wanted to dive into his work to forget Suki, but as he started all his partying and sleeping around I began to worry more. Now I'm starting to think he might have gone over to Ba Sin Sey too get away from Toph." Finished Katara. Zuko looked back over at the lake, its black waves lapping against the shore. The others sat chatting, Jack falling over and the others all laughing. He turned back to Katara.

"Where is he now?" Katara shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't know. He ran off into the forest and hasn't come back since."

"Didn't you look for him?" Katara nodded her head.

"I searched through the forest, but I couldn't find him. And after Aang found out what he did to me he refused to take Appa up to search for him." Zuko shook his head.

"So he's been gone all afternoon?"

"Yup." Zuko stood up.

"We have to go find him. We can't leave him out there."

"Why not?"

Zuko whirled around seeing Toph walking up to them with her green bowl in hand. She tossed it down in the sand. "If that jerk wants to go running around in the woods why should we care? Leave him." She said, turning and walking away.

Katara looked at Zuko. "We need her to talk." She whispered. Zuko nodded his head.

He looked after Toph, summoning the courage to speak up.

"Toph!" He called. The girl stopped, turning her head ever so slightly.

"Ya?" Zuko walked up to her, placing a hand on her shoulder, hoping that she wouldn't snap at him.

"Can you come here, for a moment?" He asked. Toph turned to him, crossing her arms, a scowl sitting across her face.

"What do you want?" Zuko returned the scowl, refusing to budge.

"We need you to tell us what happened between you and Sokka." He said. Katara came up beside him, standing firm.

"What business is it of yours, huh, Sparky? What happened between me and that dirtbag should stay that way." She said. Zuko continued to stare at her.

"Toph, we need to know." Toph turned her head, a tear trailing down her cheek. She looked down, letting her hair cover her face.

She started, her tone low and soft. "Remember that time when you took me to Gaoling, to visit my parents? And you told me to keep holding onto that hope because someday it might come true?" Zuko nodded his head, the uncomfortable memory playing in his head.

"Well, I kept it, at least for a while longer. And for a moment, for one sweet moment, I thought it was going to be fulfilled." She said, her voice pained. Zuko stood still, the tears in her voice stabbing him in the heart.

"But then we were awakened, and the dream ended." She said, running the back of her hand over her nose.

"So, in answer to your question, no. Do I want to dredge up my single most painful time in my life just so you can try and fix that meathead? No, absolutely not. If you want to know what happened, go find that scumbag, make him tell you, because I'm sure as hell aren't." Toph finished her speech with a spit, turning and walking away back to the edge of the lake.

Zuko and Katara watched the little earthbender march back to the water where she sat down, away from the others. Zuko could feel his throat choking as he thought of Toph's heartbreak, and the role that he had played in it. Had he known what was in store for his little friend he would have never encouraged her to keep thinking that she could be with Sokka. He had never imagined though that Sokka would turn like this, so impatient and rude. He had genuinely thought that Toph had stood a chance. Apparently he had been wrong.

"Well, that was useless." Said Katara, turning back around. Zuko turned and followed her, walking over to the fire.

He stared at it for a moment, collecting his thoughts. "Where do you think he got off to?" He asked. Katara shrugged her shoulders, yawning.

"I don't know. He just ran into the forest, away from me. Just like he's been doing to everyone lately." She said, rubbing her arm. "I don't think I'll ever get him back."

Zuko looked at the waterbender, pity welling up inside of him. He laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, we'll get him back." He said, giving her a reassuring squeeze. "Why don't you get some rest? We'll look for him in the morning. There's nothing we can do right now." Katara nodded her head, her eyes weary. She trudged off to her tent, leaving Zuko to yawn at the fire. A wave of sleep began to overtake him, the tingling feeling spreading throughout his whole body.

Looking out at the others he noticed that Jack and Azula were asleep, Azula's head tucked on Jack's shoulder, his head laying against hers. Mai was stumbling off to her tent, Ty-Lee already sprawled out asleep on the sand.

He blinked, his vision blurring. It looked like Toph had fallen asleep as well, her form rising and falling steadily on the beach. Even Aang was asleep, lying down on Appa's tale, a boyish grin on his face.

Zuko shook his head, trying to make sense of everything. He held out his hands, staring at his wobbling fingers. Something was wrong.

The thought sent a wave of adrenaline through his system. Someone had done something to them, they shouldn't be sleeping now, it was barely dark!

He began to fight off the drowsiness, stumbling over towards the lake, its black waters lapping up against the shore, sinister and lurking. He stopped a moment, the water terrifying him. It did not look natural.

He shook himself, stumbling forward. He had to get himself wet, he needed to keep himself awake.

Mai collapsed over to his left, passed out from whatever it was that was taking hold of them. He tried to speak, to call out to the others, but his tongue slurred in his mouth, making strange gurgling noises. His foot slipped on a pebble, sending him sprawling into the sand. His eyes began to cross, his whole sight blurring. The last thing playing through his head was the thought that Joshua was somehow behind this. Then he passed out.

* * *

><p>Sokka stumbled through the brush, pushing his way past the branches. He stumbled over a rock, falling flat on the ground, his right hand trapped against his side. He grunted, pushing himself up with his left hand, tripping once more as he got too his feet.<p>

Taking a second, he breathed in deep, trying to steady his breath. He pulled his right hand from his jacket, looking at the crimson that stained it. Blood dripped from his fingertips, fresh and warm.

Looking down he winced, a large gash in his side, the flesh torn away. It wasn't too bad, but he had had it for so long now that the blood-loss was getting to him. He needed to patch it up, and quick.

He forced himself to his feet once more, marching on through the forest. The morning air stung his lungs with every breath, the darkness slowly fading to the milky light of dawn. By the time he reached the lake the sun was cresting the mountains, its yellow rays sparkling against the black waters.

Sokka fell once more, landing on his shoulder in the sand. He worked his way to the water, coming into it and sitting himself up on his knees. Reaching down a hand he called the water to him, the liquid turning pitch black as he thought of healing himself. It swirled with yellow energy, menacing and sinister. Was that how it was supposed to look like?

The dark nature of the water made him second guess himself, thinking perhaps that he was calling an infectious bending of sorts instead of a healing one. A sharp pain in his side made him wince, his vision blurring a second. He had to try.

Placing his hand on his side, he thought about happy things, pleasant healing images. Puppies, meat, his boomerang. However, when he placed his palm to his side a sharp stab of pain began searing into his flesh, the positive thoughts doing nothing. He cried out in pain, gritting his teeth and yanking his hand away, flinging the water back into the lake. It turned into ice shards, cutting through the water and melting inside the lakes depths.

He sat back on his haunches, taking in a few deep breaths and calming himself. Appa had supplies, bandages and things of the sort, he could just go over and grab those, use them to patch himself up.

Turning around, he was just about to stumble off to Appa, when suddenly he realized that he wasn't alone. Toph stood in front of him, staring at him, her hair dripping. Apparently she had just woken up and dunked her head, probably to get rid of the drowsiness.

Sokka smiled, happy to see his little friend. Things had been pretty rough between them recently, mostly because of him. Alright, all because of him, but at the moment he really wanted to make up for it.

He watched her as she took a step closer, her eyes staring into his. "Hey Toph." He managed, panting. She didn't react, which he didn't know to take as a good or bad sign.

"How you doing?" He asked. Toph reached out a hand, running her wet fingers along the curves of his grimy face. Suddenly she stepped back, blinking.

"Sokka?" She said, her voice uncertain. Sokka raised an eyebrow.

"Uhm, ya, I think so?" He said, hoping that he still looked like himself. Then he realized that he was talking to Toph, it wouldn't matter.

The girl continued to stare at him, blinking. After a few more moments the earthbender threw her hands down by her side, clenched in fists. She opened her mouth, letting out a high pitched wail that sent him sprawling back on the ground. Birds flew away from their perch as Toph screamed up into the sky, awakening everyone from their slumber.

Sokka watched as they all stumbled towards them, blinking. They all kinda looked like they had hangovers.

Toph continued to scream in front of him, her cheeks turning red, her eyes shut tight. She just kept on screaming, eventually coming to the point that Sokka thought she was going to pass out, but she stopped, gasping for air. She looked at him, blinking, then turned around, running off.

Sokka watched as everyone gathered around Toph, bombarding the girl with questions. Eventually Katara noticed that he was sitting over in the sand, and she peeled off, running up to him and sliding on her knees.

"Sokka, are you okay?" She asked, her voice filled with concern. Sokka smiled, giving her a reassuring grin.

"Fine sis, just a bit banged up. Think you can take a look?" He asked. Katara looked at his side, noticing the red stain on his jacket. Her eyes widened, a hand brushing up against the wet blood.

"Take off your jacket." She ordered.

Sokka obliged, taking off his jacket with a wince, letting Katara poke around at his wound. She ran a hand over it, feeling the tears in his flesh, the blood trickling out and down her hands. She pulled back, reaching her hands towards the river.

"Don't worry big brother, I'll have you fixed up in no time." She said. Sokka watched his sister as she waited a moment, her hand outstretched. A frown crossed her face, her head turning to the lake and staring at the water as it lapped against the shore.

Sokka watched as she jabbed her hand out again, using both of them. "Something up?" He asked, the pain in his side making him wince. Katara shook her head, laughing nervously.

"No, nothing's wrong." She said, gritting her teeth and sticking her hand out again. She swore.

"There must be something up with the lake water." She said. Sokka reached out his hand, willing the water to his hand. It swirled up, turning black in his palm.

"Nothing's wrong with it." He said, flicking the water out of his grasp and back into the lake. Katara shook her head, a scowl on her face.

"Well, I don't know. Apparently my body doesn't feel like bending at the moment." She said, flipping the lid off if her water skin. She brushed her fingers against the mouth of the skin, drawing her fingers up to bend the water out. It didn't move.

Sokka raised an eyebrow. "Having trouble sis?" Katara shook her head, trying again.

"I'm not having trouble! The water's just being stubborn." She muttered, turning the skin upside down and pouring the water into her hands. It slipped through her fingers, spilling into the sand. Katara swore again.

"What in the world! Why can't I bend?" Zuko walked up to them, looking back to where the others stood.

"Katara, there's something you need to take a look at. It's Toph." Started Zuko. Katara shook her head.

"Can't you see I'm trying to heal my brother right now?" She said, jabbing a finger at Sokka. He brushed the finger away.

"Look sis, you're not exactly top notch at the moment. Why don't you let Zuko go get me some bandages and we'll patch me up the old fashioned way." Katara glared at him for a moment, then stood up, stalking off to Toph. Zuko looked down at him, raising an eyebrow.

"What was that about?" Sokka watched the commotion spread as Katara joined the group.

"She can't bend at the moment." He replied, reaching up and grabbing Zuko's outstretched hand. Zuko pulled him up.

"Her too?" Zuko placed himself underneath Sokka's arm, helping him over towards Appa. Sokka raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean her too?" He asked. Zuko looked back at the other group.

"Toph can't bend either." Sokka stole a glance back, Toph pushing away Katara's prying hands. He shook his head.

"What's going on around here?" Zuko shrugged his shoulders, setting him down beside Appa.

"I don't know, but I'm hoping to find out." Zuko walked over to Appa's saddle, routing through to find the bandages, giving Sokka a chance to lean his head back into the warm, shaggy, fur behind him. He tried to reach back into the night before and remember what had happened.

Something had happened, that much he knew for sure, he just couldn't remember what. There had been a lot of screaming and shouting, along with a familiar voice. Then there was pain in his side and more shouting. He remembered crashing through the forest, barely making it away from…someone.

He sighed, leaning further back into Appa's warm mass, the musty smell of the beast reassuring him of safety. It was just black. Somehow, he had forgotten what he had done last night, which meant that something dreadfully important had occurred. That also meant that there was danger about.

Zuko returned with the bandages, helping wrap his side wound. Sokka grunted as the firebender pulled the cloth tight, the pain becoming a thud in his side. At least he wasn't going to bleed to death now.

Once that was done Zuko sat down beside him, holding out a canteen of water. Sokka reached out his hand to take the canteen, but Zuko pulled it away out of his reach.

"Bend it." Said the firebender, staring at him. Sokka frowned, a flash of red crossing his vision, but he obliged Zuko anyways. He flicked his wrist, the water coming out and slithering into his mouth. He drank it with a slurp, looking at Zuko's stern face.

"So it is true." Said Zuko, setting the canteen down. Sokka grunted.

"Yup, the dumb one can finally bend." He said, spite sinking into his voice. Zuko sighed next to him.

"Sokka, you know that's not how we think of you." Sokka held up a hand, cutting the firebender off.

"Look, I've been the butt end of too many jokes. I don't want to hear how you guys actually respected me all the while. If you really did, you would have said something earlier." Zuko held up his hands.

"Alright, alright. I won't say anything about it." Sokka touched his side gently, pain flaring up into his head and clearing it of the red.

Zuko watched him for a moment.

"Sokka, where were you last night?" Sokka opened his mouth to respond, then remembered that he didn't remember.

"I don't know, it's all a blur." He said. Zuko grunted.

"Sounds like my night." Sokka noticed something sitting over on a tree.

He stood up, his eyes fixed on the piece of fluttering brown. "Really? What, you guys find my stash of alcohol?" He asked, starting off to the tree. Zuko chuckled slightly, the laugh dying in his throat.

"You brought a stash of alcohol?" Sokka stumbled, taking a moment to regain his footing. Zuko came up behind him.

"Ya, I stowed it in a hallowed out tree trunk about a hundred yards from camp. Been getting drunk every night after you guys leave me alone. Surprised you haven't noticed yet." He said, shame creeping into his voice. "Can't say that I'm proud of it." He continued, walking ahead.

The piece of parchment fluttered softly in the breeze, a knife stuck through it into the tree. Sokka reached out, grabbing the golden hilt with his grimy fingers. The black leather around the handle was cold, two black diamonds shining in the golden quillons. He gave the blade a tug, grabbing the parchment as it fluttered down.

Zuko stood behind him. "Seriously Sokka, we need to have a talk." Sokka nodded his head.

"Sure thing Zuko, whatever you say." He said, reading over the blue calligraphy.

_Respite is over_

_Time to play once more my friend_

_Catch me if you can_

A knot rose in Sokka's throat as he read the note. He reached his hand out back to Zuko, handing him the parchment. His mind began to reel as he thought once more about the lunatic that had killed Suki. The urge for vengeance once again rose up inside of him, his hands shaking as he thought of killing the man who had taken Suki from him.

The sound of Zuko growling made him turn, watching as the young firebender shook, the note in his grasp. Zuko held it out at arm's length, staring at it as if he could make it explode. The parchment just sat there in his hand, crinkled, but undamaged.

Sokka watched as a confused look came over Zuko's face. Once again the firebender reached out his hand, grunting this time. Nothing happened. Sokka raised an eyebrow. Either this guy was trying to throw the piece of paper and it had bonded with his hand or else Zuko couldn't firebend.

Zuko began to get violent, thrusting and raging about, throwing his arms around. Sokka took a couple of shaky steps back, not wanting to get smacked by one of Zuko's pin wheeling arms. He stood there and watched until Zuko stopped, breathing heavy, his hands still bereft of flame.

"What's wrong with me?" Asked Zuko, looking at his hands with a perplexed stare.

Sokka chuckled, an amused smile spreading across his face. "It looks like it's contagious. First my sister, then Toph, now you. I wonder who else can't bend." He said. Zuko turned to him, a wild look in his eye.

"That's it, isn't it?" Sokka raised an eyebrow.

"What's it?" Zuko ignored him, turning around and running to the others. Sokka started to limp his way over, the pain in his side keeping his mind clear of red.

He watched as first Jack, then Aang stomp on the ground, confused looks coming across their faces. They made a few other motions, swinging their arms about, but nothing happened, much to Sokka's amusement. He stood back a little ways, watching as a wave of voices rose up, everyone chattering at once, talking to one another.

Toph, on the fringe of the group, just stood there, her eyes roving about. She turned her head to him, her eyes actually lighting up. A debate seemed to rage in her mind for a moment, but a second later she started walking over to him, her small frame moving steadily over the ground.

He looked at her eyes, marveling at how beautiful they were this morning. They sparkled in the sunrise, like glass emeralds, clear, and pristine. Wells of beauty flowing out to him. He paused, blinking.

Wait, were her eyes clear? That couldn't be right. Toph had milky green eyes, he was sure of it. He had dreamed of those eyes many a night in Ba Sin Sey, waking up in a sweat next to another strange woman he hardly knew.

Toph came up to him, staring at him in the face.

"You okay?" She asked, lifting up a hand. She hesitated next to his face, taking her hand back.

"Ya, just a bit banged up, that's all." He said, matching her stare. "How about you?" Toph shrugged her shoulders, kicking at the sand.

"Can't complain too much." She said. Sokka chuckled.

"What was with that scream earlier? I thought you were going to burst my eardrums." Toph laughed nervously.

"Ohh, ya, sorry about that. I was just surprised to see you." She said.

Sokka stepped forward, wanting to reach out a hand, but Toph drew back. He lowered his hand. "Surprised to see me huh? What happened to the Blind Bandit who sensed all?" He asked. Toph swallowed.

"That just the thing, I'm not sensing at the moment." She said.

Sokka bit his tongue, remembering that she couldn't bend at the moment. How could he be so cold?

"Oh, Toph, I'm so sorry." Started Sokka, pausing a moment later. His countenance dropped, a confused look crossing his face. "Wait, if you can't bend, how did you know I'm here?" He asked, looking at her. She looked up at him with her emerald eyes, the green sparkling like glass in the sunrise.

"I can see you." She said simply, brushing back a strand of hair. Sokka stood stunned for a moment, trying to grasp that statement. She could see him? Her, Toph, the blind one, she could see him? That didn't make sense. He opened his mouth to object, but Toph held up a hand.

"You're wearing a blue jacket with a blood stain on your right side, white hand wraps, a white bandage around your waist and brown hair drawn back in a ponytail." Sokka frowned.

"It's a warrior's wolf-tail." He said, freezing a moment later as he realized that Toph could actually see him. He looked down at her stupidly, his mouth hanging open slightly.

Noises began to come out of his mouth. "Ho…Wha….huh?!" Toph smiled at him.

"I don't know. All I do know was that I went to sleep blind and bending and woke up seeing and not-bending." She said. Sokka could still not believe it, raising up a hand with fingers outstretched. Toph snorted.

"You meathead, I could tell you how many fingers you had up even if I was blind, remember?" Sokka lowered his hand. That was right, the whole vibrations traveling up his body thing.

(Let us leave them alone to sort things out for a moment so that I, the author, my explain to you, my most intelligent and lovely reader, what it is that is going on, as it won't be explained in the story. Bending, as you no doubt know due to your large intellect, is caused by open nervous systems within the subject that allows them to send out electric impulses that operate at a certain frequency that resonates with certain elements, thus allowing them to manipulate them. Normal people do not have open nervous systems and thus cannot bend the elements. Toph, however, is something special. Her system was genetically designed to be closed, but instead of closing off her other nervous endings her body closed off her eyes, the one that was supposed to be open. Thus, as Joshua made a drug that closed their nerve endings, Toph's nervous system refocused itself on her eyes and reopened them, thus allowing her to see but not able to bend. However, Sokka won't ever figure that out, so now it's your little secret, so don't tell him. Stay beautiful my most talented readers)

Sokka stood amongst all the others, a raging debate ensuing in their midst. Zuko had informed all the others of Joshua's little message, thus sparking a landslide of different questions and demands. The others had all tried to bend, but failed, leaving Sokka, the new guy, as the only bender in the group.

At the moment he was sitting on a log, listening to his friends argue and debate as to what to do. Toph sat next to him, looking around at the new world about her, marveling at all the sights.

"You know." She said. "I would really like to go back to the mountains now and go see those crystals. The others said they changed colors." Sokka's eye twitched, red fighting at the edge of his vision.

"What crystals?" He asked, suppressing the rising desire to smack Toph.

"Yesterday, when we went to the mountains, I found these vibrating crystals and winding tunnels. It was pretty cool." A horrendous image flashed through his mind, making him fall back with a start. Toph reached out and grabbed him.

"Whoa, you alright there Snoozles?" She asked. Sokka smacked her hand away, picking himself up.

"Don't touch me mutt!" He snapped. Toph drew back, pain washing across her face. She scowled at him, a deep frown on her lips.

"I was just trying to help you meathead!" She retorted. Sokka felt the rage building up inside him once more, but he fought it off, taking in a deep breath. He had to remain calm, losing his cool wasn't going to do anything for him.

He held up his hands. "Sorry Toph, I'm just a little short at the moment." He started. Toph stood up, glaring at him.

"You know what, no, I'm not doing this." She said. "You know, for a moment there I almost fell for it, you pretending you were hurt and everything. But no, I'm not getting suckered in!" She jabbed a finger at him.

"You can go be a sleaze-bag with some whore, but not me! You just stay away from me!" She called, marching away. Sokka felt his hand shaking as he watched her storm off.

He called after her. "I was just trying to APOLOGIZE! Ungrateful tramp!" Toph waved him off, storming away from him back to the camp. The others continued to argue, not noticing the exchange between the two.

Sokka sat down, shaking his head. How in the world had that escalated so quickly? One moment they were their old selves, enjoying each other's company, the next he was back to insulting her and hurting her feelings. What was wrong with him? Why had he done that? He sighed.

He didn't have an answer for that. All he knew was that every time it seemed like things were going well he opened his mouth and inserted his foot.

Somehow mister smooth just couldn't cut it with his friends. Want a court of politicians wooed into submission? He was your guy. Want the prettiest woman at the ball in your bed? He was your man. Want your best friend the beautiful Blind Bandit to like you? Well, might as well go get a stick, it would have a better chance than him.

He looked up at his other friends, watching as they were arguing, pointing around at the mountains and into the forest. Eventually Jack froze, looking around at them. The man yelled, silencing everyone.

"Where's Azula?!" Sokka looked around, realizing that Azula was nowhere to be seen. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't seen her at all since he had stumbled back here.

Now the conversation turned to Azula. Do you think she was taken? Perhaps she and Joshua were actually working together? Had she taken away their bending? On and on the conversations went, Katara and Aang voicing the opinion that their recent loss of their bending was her fault, whereas Jack and Zuko argued against them. Mai and Ty-Lee merely stood to the side, adding a comment every now and again that kept the argument going.

Eventually Zuko silenced the group, stopping them to think for a moment. Sokka watched as the firebender began to stroke his chin, pacing around.

Standing up with a grunt, Sokka made his way over to the group. His sister stood with her arms crossed, staring at Jack with the most hostile glare she could muster. Sokka knew that she still hadn't forgiven Jack for lying to them all. The man's current support of Azula wasn't buying him any points with her as well and to be honest with himself, Sokka didn't like him that much either. Then again, at the moment, he couldn't really say whether or not he liked anybody, not even himself. At least it made it easier; everyone hated him, he hated everyone. It was a good relationship.

Zuko turned to him as he approached.

"Sokka, do you remember anything from last night?" He shook his head.

"Look, if I did remember anything I would have told you."

"Where did you go?" Asked Katara.

Sokka groaned. "Katara, what part of 'I don't remember anything' do you not understand?" He said. Katara frowned.

"I was just wondering." She muttered. Sokka sighed, trying to control his tongue.

"All I remember is going out to the east, towards the mountains. Then there was…something." The others stared at him.

"What something?" Asked Katara.

"How the hell should I know?! All I do know was that I stumbled back here to camp with a giant gash in my side and all you yahoos complaining that you lost your bending!" Sokka threw his arms up, bringing them back down with a grimace as the pain in his side flared up once again. It coursed through his body, clearing up his mind once more. He took a deep breath, a tear trailing down his cheek.

"Look, I don't know if Azula's up to something again, if it's really Joshua, or the two have been working together all along. Honestly they all seem plausible, so I wouldn't rule out anything quite yet. What I do know, however, is that there's something over in those mountains." He said, pointing out east. "And we need to find out what." Zuko sighed, nodding his head.

"Sokka's right." Said Jack. "We need to set aside this argument for the moment and focus on the problem. Our bending is gone, Joshua is back, and there's something in the mountains. We'll have to go off of that." The others nodded their heads in agreement.

The group moved out from there, gathering different items and supplies for their journey to the mountains. It was decided that Katara and Aang would go on Appa. Zuko would lead a group with Mai and Toph, while Jack led the other group with Ty-Lee and Sokka. If Aang found anything at the mountain or spotted anything on the ground he would come back and notify everyone else. It seemed like a solid enough plan, but there was a hitch. When Aang tried to fly off with Appa the beast would not leave the ground.

Aang tugged and tugged at the reins, begging Appa to leave the ground, but the beast merely growled, refusing to budge an inch. Eventually Aang got the beast to swing its tail, but nothing happened, no soaring, no flying up into the sky, just a shudder on the ground as the massive tail landed.

"Great, even Appa can't bend." Said Zuko. Sokka shrugged his shoulders.

"Guess we'll all have to walk." He said. Zuko nodded his head.

"Right, Sokka, you lead Aang and Katara's group." Aang frowned, looking over at Sokka. Katara seemed unsure, but not too upset with the development. Sokka, however, did not like the idea at all.

He turned to Zuko, a frown on his face. "Why do I have to babysit them? I've done it for years now, can't I go with someone else?" Katara snorted behind him.

"Sokka, don't be stubborn. Just go with them, alright?" Said Zuko. Sokka sighed, the pain in his side keeping his head clear.

"Alright, alright, I'll take them." He said. He turned around to Katara, walking over and snatching her water skin from her grasp.

"I'll be needing that, thank you very much." Katara glared at him but did not move to retrieve the skin.

"Alright everybody, stay sharp, and remember, Joshua still has his bending, we don't. If you find him don't engage, just follow him and send one of the group back to get the others. We'll proceed forward from there." Said Zuko, his swords strapped to his back. The others all nodded their heads in agreement, Mai and Ty-Lee not too bothered by the situation.

From there they spread out through the forest, combing the area and moving towards the mountain. Sokka led Aang and Katara down the path that he had walked, retracing his steps as best he could. They traveled in silence, the only noise that of the trees rustling in the breeze.

It was difficult at first finding his trail, as everything around in the immediate forest was broken and bent, boot prints staggering all around. If he remembered correctly they were all his tracks, his staggering about from his midnight carouses. He was such a pleasant guy.

Eventually, though, they stumbled across what seemed to be the path that he had taken earlier, drops of blood on the ground. They followed it wearily, not knowing what lay on the path before them.

A twig snapped behind him, making him spin with the water whipped out, turned into an ice shard. The tip of the shard rested on Aang's throat, the boy grinning embarrassed as he lifted his foot off of a twig. Sokka let out a breath.

"Dang it Aang, you need to be more careful than that! What if Joshua was around, huh? You would have alerted him to our presence." Aang smiled sheepishly.

"Sorry, my bad." Sokka shook his head, rolling his eyes.

"Just be more careful." He grumbled, continuing on. Katara remained quiet for the exchange, looking past him into the forest. She came up beside him, walking carefully in his footprints.

"You're learning fast." She whispered. Sokka looked at her.

"What?" He asked, confused. Katara lifted a low lying branch out of his way, letting him duck underneath.

"Waterbending, you're picking it up pretty quick." Sokka held the branch up for his sister, letting it fall down on Aang. The airbender gave a little yelp.

"Well, I do have a master waterbender for a sister; I know what most of the moves look like." He said, looking into the foliage ahead of them.

"That still doesn't add up. Aang is the most talented bender I've ever seen, yet even he didn't get ice shards down for a couple of months." Sokka waved a hand.

"That's because he's a sissy and doesn't like hurting people." Aang gave an indignant grunt from behind, but didn't say anything more.

"Sokka, this just isn't natural!" Hissed Katara. "You shouldn't be a bender!"

Sokka turned on her, red crossing over his face. "Why shouldn't I be a bender, huh? Because I might actually be able to do something? Because I might be better than you? Because I won't be the comedy relief anymore?" Katara's countenance fell, Sokka's anger deflating her. She relented, pulling back.

Sokka grunted, turning around and continuing on. He fumed for a while, wishing many unpleasant things upon his sister, but eventually it subsided, leaving him empty once more. He stole a glance back at his sister's saddened face, a tear dripping down her cheek. A pang of guilt shot through his heart as he realized that he had once again hurt someone close to him. What was wrong with him?

A noise from ahead distracted him from his sister. The group stopped, peering through the trees in front of them to a little clearing, two figures walking around talking to each other. Or, to be more specific, arguing with each other.

"Why are we doing this?!"

"Because he told us to! Isn't that enough?" Sokka waved the others own, crouching low and crawling through the underbrush on his belly. Katara and Aang followed up alongside him. He inched his way forward through the dirt, grim getting stuck underneath his fingertips. The voices continued to grow.

"Why kidnap another one? Why not just kill one? That makes more sense."

"Because he didn't tell us to do that, he told us to kidnap another one!" Sokka brushed aside a branch obscuring his view, allowing him to peek into the clearing. Two people stood in the middle of the clearing, yelling at one another with a babbling brook running at their feet.

"This is just ridiculous!" Called the one on the left, brown hair falling around his head. The boy threw up his hands, blue arrow tattoos running on his body. There was a sharp intake of breath as Aang noticed the tattoos, but the boy kept his mouth shut. The man on the right responded.

"What, what's so ridiculous?" This man also had blue tattoos, but these ones were different. They were in a darker blue ink, much more intricate and fearsome, running along all areas of exposed flesh, save his face, which remained untouched.

"This plan!" Yelled back the younger one. "It's absurd, it makes no sense. It's like we're in a book and the author's intentionally keeping them alive!" Sokka paused, raising an eyebrow. That was absurd, even by his standards. And he had done cactus juice before, and been drunk, and been drunk while doing cactus juice. Ya, not a good time. The other man seemed to agree.

"What? What in the whole wide world are you talking about? You know what, no, never mind, just shut up, I don't want to know."

"The plan sucks!" Replied the smaller boy, tapping at something strapped to his back. The larger one shook his head.

"That's only because we don't know all of it."

"Well the bit we do know sucks! It's like he's trying to keep them all alive! We could have killed them all when they were knocked out, no more problem!"

"Lee, just shut up, would you please just shut up!"

"You know what mom said about your temper." The larger boy glared at the smaller one, lightning sparking between their stare.

"Stop bringing mother into this." Growled the larger one. Sokka looked over at Katara.

"Brothers." He whispered. Katara nodded her head in agreement. Only people related to each other acted like this. Sokka turned back around to see the smaller one pacing around, a black sword in his hand. He gasped a moment later as he recognized the blade. It was his space sword!

The boy swung it through the air, the blade swishing and swirling. It flowed in the boy's grasp, swinging fluidly, cutting through all the maneuvers at lightning speed. Finally the boy flipped the sword, catching it by the tip of the blade with his fingers, balancing it by the point in the air.

"What good does this type of weapon do?" The larger boy looked over, shaking his head as he was raised from thought.

"Huh? Lee, what are you doing with that!?" The younger boy named Lee shrugged his shoulders, flipping the blade back around so that he was holding the hilt.

"Joshua told me to take it with. Said it might come in handy when we grabbed the other girl." The larger boy walked over to him, grabbing the sword from his little brother.

"You know what mother said about you and sharp objects." Lee raised an eyebrow.

"I think you're confused there bro, you were the one that wasn't allowed to have sharp objects." Said Lee. "You always poked me." The larger boy rolled his eyes, throwing the sword in the ground, then picking it up and swinging it around in his grasp.

"Why do you think Joshua gave it to me?" Asked Lee. The larger man paused, looking at the blade.

"He said that it was the man's blade before he lost it in battle. With his current state Joshua thought that it might be plausible to make a trade. The girl for his blade." Sokka raised an eyebrow. There was no way he would trade anybody in their party for his sword, even though he did really miss it. Except maybe Toph…and Ty-Lee….probably Mai…and to be honest with himself Katara too, just maybe, depends on how she was acting when the deal was offered.

Sokka shook his head, trying to focus on the situation. He could dream about bartering away her sister some other time, at the moment he needed to get the others.

Turning to Aang, he motioned him closer, leaning up and pressing his lips to the boy's ear. "Get the others, we'll spy them out." Aang nodded his head, slinking back stealthy. A few moments later his footsteps receded, leaving only Sokka and Katara behind to watch the two strange boys in blue. They were arguing again.

"Why are we sitting here? I thought we were supposed to be getting the girl." That was Lee. The larger man, whom Sokka had decided to call Tats, muttered something, looking around them at the trees.

"Are you lost?" Asked Lee. Tats shook his head.

"No! I'm not lost! Why do you think I'm lost?" Lee started laughing.

"What's the matter Sangee, afraid to ask for directions?" Tats growled.

"There's no one to ask for directions."

"So you are lost!" Laughed Lee, making Tats's face glow red.

"Well how about instead of making fun of me you help me find out where the heck we are." Lee chuckled to himself.

"Don't worry big bro, I got you." Said the younger boy, making his way over to a tree. With surprising agility the boy scrambled up, reaching the top within a minute. Sokka craned his neck to see what was happening, a moment later the boy falling and landing softly on the ground.

"Camp's that way." Said Lee, pointing towards the lake. "Captain McLosty." Tats growled but stood up non-the-less, preparing to go off towards their camp.

Sokka watched them as they prepared to leave, a thought striking him. Why should he let them go? They had his space sword. Besides, he was getting pretty good at this bending thing, he could take them. After moment he decided. Ya, he was going to take them

Sokka turned to Katara, reaching down and pulling out his boomerang which he had liberated from her tent before coming on this endeavor. "Here." He whispered, pressing it into her hands. Katara looked at the boomerang in her hands, looking back up at him with a confused look.

"What do you want me to do with this?" She hissed. Sokka rolled his eyes.

"Throw it at them! You take the little one, I'll handle Tats." He said, getting ready to stand up. Katara reached up a hand on pulled him back down.

"We can't take those two!" She whispered.

"Why not?" He replied, watching as the two brothers prepared to go off once more.

"Because…because…I don't know! I just know we're supposed to wait for the others!" Sokka snorted.

"They got my sword, we're not waiting." And with that he leapt out of the foliage, flipping the lid off of his water skin. He whipped it out, throwing a wave of ice shards at Tats.

Lee cried out, bringing Tats attention to Sokka just in time to turn and spin himself in the air, a vortex of air developing around him and shattering the ice shards. The boy landed on his feet, slamming his fist into the ground, sending a wave of air and dirt flying at him.

Not used to being able to bend while fighting Sokka relied on his old style, diving to the side with a role, avoiding the attack and reaching up to his back, expecting to find his boomerang. That's when he remembered that he had just handed it to his sister, and that he could bend.

Coming back to his feet, he took water from the creek, gathering it in his hands like two whips, cracking them at the two brothers. Lee did a back flip and avoided the blow, Tats merely cutting his arms across the whip, sending a blast of air that shot the water away.

Sokka spun, reaching out a hand and catching the water, shooting it back in ice shards at the boys. Lee called to his brother, taking two steps towards him and placing his foot in his brother's intertwined hands. Tats heaved upwards, Lee shooting off the ground and high into the air, spinning and launching himself with a burst of air at Sokka. Tats proceeded to breath in, blowing out a might gust of wind that shattered the ice.

Looking up, Sokka watched as Lee sped at him, taking the split second he had left to take the water and make a shield of ice in front of him, rolling out of the way as the boy crashed through the wall, landing on his feet and jabbing two quick fingers at Sokka. They hit him in the arm, his arm tingling for a moment only to recoil and whip a column of water into Lee, sending him flying into the brook.

Lee crashed hard, skipping across the brook and landing on the other side. The boy hopped back up to his feet, shaking himself.

"Sangee, it didn't work!" Called the boy. Tats stared Sokka down, circling him.

"I know Lee." Sokka cracked his neck, wiggling his fingers. He watched Tats, waiting for him to make the first move. Right as he thought Tats was going to make a move something crashed into the side of his face, knocking him over. He fell to the ground with a thud, grunting as blood began to trickle down his brow. A piece of metal sat next to him.

"Ohh, sorry!" Sokka picked up the piece of metal, realizing that it was his boomerang. He rolled his eyes as he got back to his feet. He had been doing just fine until his sister had stepped in.

Getting back to his feet, he was just in time to get blasted by a wave of air, flying back and splashing into the brook. He got back to his feet and gathered the water around himself, creating a swirling vortex just waiting for direction. When he looked up, however, he saw Katara, a blade pressed against her throat.

For a moment he hesitated, the vortex dying around him, but he shook it off, keeping the water cycling. Tats held Sokka's sword, curling Katara's wrist up behind her back, making her grimace.

"Drop the water and we won't kill her." Called Tats. Sokka snorted, still bending. Lee came up next to his brother, a wide grin across his face.

"Hey, well that works. Good catch." Sokka watched the two brothers as they exchanged a quick look, turning their stare back at him.

"Drop the water." Growled the boy, but Sokka made no move to comply. Lee shrugged his shoulders.

"We got her, we don't need him too. Let's just get out of here." Tats looked behind at the forest, slowly walking back with Katara still in his hold. Lee followed, a wide grin on his face. The boy jabbed Katara with a series of punches, his hands moving so fast they were a blur. Katara went limp, her eyes rolling back in her head. Tats sheathed the sword and swung Katara over his shoulder, taking off through the forest, his brother close on his heels.

Sokka immediately dropped the water around him, bending down to scoop up his boomerang as he ran after them, having sense enough to whip some water into his skin before he left the brook.

Sprinting through the forest, he crashed through branches and bushes, the pines whipping out and scratching his face. His heart pounded in his chest as he tracked them down, catching brief glimpses of them as he kept after them, but eventually they began to pull ahead. They were too fast for him, and the pain in his side was growing. Soon his world began to spin, and the next thing he knew he was on his knees, panting for breath. All he could do was sit back and watch as the last traces of the brothers disappeared in the forest ahead of him, leaving him sucking for wind. He had lost them.


	3. Mother Deary

**Chapter XIII**

"You did what?!"

"I lost her, okay, no big deal."

"No big deal, it's your sister, how can't that be a big deal!?"

"Sokka, what were you thinking? Taking them on with just your sister? How in the world did that play out well in your mind?"

"What did you want me to do? They had my space sword!" Zuko groaned, palming himself on the forehead. Why was it he had to deal with crap like this? A crazy sister, a crazy friend, and a crazy murderer. It was just what he imagined he would be dealing with when he became Fire-Lord, minus the friend and murderer.

He took a couple steps away from the water-tribe boy, letting Aang take his turn at yelling at him.

Aang had found his group first and led them back to where he had last seen Sokka and Katara. Once they had gotten to the clearing they searched the area, finding signs of battle; damaged trees, water everywhere, as well as a little trail of blood from what turned out to be the gash above Sokka's right eyebrow. They had found him on his knees, staring blankly ahead of himself into the forest. Sokka had had no clue for how long he had been sitting there, but it was long enough for the two airbenders that he had seen to get far, far, away.

Now they merely waited for Mai to return with Jack and Ty-Lee in order to devise their next move. They had to decide whether or not it they should stay as a group or split up once more. If they stayed as a group they would not cover as much ground, but they would be safer. There was no saying that Joshua would leave them be now that he had taken two of them. It was more likely that he was just toying with them all, messing with them before he picked them all off, one by one.

Zuko shook his head, looking around the forest, hoping that no one was spying on them at the moment. Eventually he turned around, finding Aang and Sokka screaming in each other's faces. He came between them and broke it up, shoving them both to the ground.

He looked at them, giving them both a cold stare. "You both need to cool it. We're not going to get through this if we're constantly fighting each other." Aang frowned.

"He got Katara captured!" Cried Aang.

"At least I tried something!" Countered Sokka. Zuko held up his hands, silencing them before they could continue.

"Yes, Sokka got Katara captured, but that doesn't mean we turn on him, it was just a mistake that won't happen again." He said, looking at Sokka askance. "Right Sokka?" Sokka crossed his arms, looking at the ground. The boy mumbled something beneath his breath.

"What was that?" Asked Zuko.

"I said it won't happen again!" Replied Sokka, raising his voice.

"See." Said Zuko, turning to Aang. "Won't happen again." He turned around and walked away from the two, making his way over to a tree, a figure clad in green leaning up against the rough bark, arms crossed. He reached out a hand, tapping the person on the shoulder.

The person whirled on him, eyes wide, fists raised. A moment later she lowered her arms, an embarrassed smile across her lips. "Sorry Sparky, I'm used to sensing someone before they touched me." Zuko walked over to a tree a couple feet away from Toph, leaning up against it.

"How you doing?" He asked. Toph snorted.

"Fine, why would you think otherwise?" Zuko shrugged his shoulders, itching the back of his ear.

"No reason, just, you know, the whole losing your bending and all." Toph crossed her arms again, spitting on the ground.

"You're doing perfectly fine without it, why shouldn't I?"

Zuko looked back at Aang and Sokka, pleased to see that they were merely exchanging malevolent glares. "When I was in the Earth-Kingdom on the run from Azula I had to stop using my firebending. It was pretty tough, but you get used to it. You, however, don't know what it's like to have no bending. It was your sight, your way of life, and now it's gone." Toph blew a strand of black hair away from her emerald eyes, frowning.

"Hey, I can see now, I don't need my Earthbending." Zuko chuckled.

"So you think it's a good trade off?" He asked. Toph looked up at the sky, the sunlight shining down through the branches on onto her face. She then turned her head back and looked at the boys.

"To be honest, I don't know." She said, shocking him. He blinked.

"You mean you'd be willing to trade your Earthbending to be able to see?" He asked. Toph snapped back to him, shaking her head.

"What? No, that's not what I was saying." She said. Zuko raised an eyebrow.

"Then what were you saying?" Toph fumed for a few moments, opening and closing her mouth several times. Obviously she did not want to offer a response, but he was not going to let her off the hook so easily.

She was saved, however, by the arrival of Mai and the others. Zuko walked over to Mai, grabbing her by the hand and giving her a kiss on the cheek. Mai drew back with a frown.

"Zuko I'm fine. Nothing happened." She said. Zuko frowned slightly.

"Sorry, I was just happy to see you." He said. Mai looked at the others, turning back to him with a slight smile.

"I'm glad to see you too." She said, leaning in and giving him a quick kiss. He smiled, letting her walk over to Sokka and Aang. Jack came up to him, Ty-Lee going over to Toph.

"Mai filled me in. Idiot boy got his sister taken?" Zuko ran a hand through his hair.

"Ya, that's what it looks like. Don't call him that though, he's still a friend." Jack grunted.

"Messed up albeit."

Zuko shook his head. "Come on, let's get this figured out." The two walked over to the rest of the group, the others merely sitting and staring at each other. They all turned their heads to Zuko as he approached, the mantle of leadership once again falling to him. He sighed inwardly, the burden wearing him thin. He could not give up, however, if he couldn't lead his friends to capture this lunatic how did he expect to lead his nation to recovery?

Jack looked over at Sokka. "Airbenders, huh?" Sokka merely growled.

"I thought airbenders were all extinct, except Aang?" The others turned, looking at Ty-Lee. Zuko raised an eyebrow at Sokka.

"You sure they were airbenders?" He asked. Sokka frowned, standing up.

"Hey, look, I know you guys don't think I'm the brightest guy around, but when I say they were airbenders that means they were AIRBENDERS!" Yelled Sokka, making Aang jump back. Zuko held up his hands.

"Alright, alright, I believe you. I just don't see how that's possible." Sokka flipped him off, showing Zuko just how much he cared about his assurance.

"I don't give a damn how they got their bending, all I do know is that they got my sister."

"Only because you let them." Retorted Aang, crossing his arms. Sokka glared at Aang, Aang returning the hostile glare with a condescending smirk. Zuko rolled his eyes, suppressing a groan.

"Jack, you got any clue?" He asked. Jack scratched his chin for a moment, thinking.

"Some of my people managed to escape the Air-Nomad genocide, it's plausible that some airbenders escaped the Fire-Nation one." Zuko turned back to Sokka.

"See, you were right. They're airbenders." Sokka gave him the bird for a second time, making Zuko shake his head. That boy had problems.

"So then, I guess it comes down to what is to be done." He said.

Looking at the others, he mulled things over a moment, trying to decide on the best course of action. "Who thinks we should stay together?" He asked, watching as the hands were raised. Only Toph and Sokka kept their hands down, staring each other down. Zuko grunted.

"Well then, I guess that's settled. We go together, as a group from here on out. That way there won't be any more incidents." He said, looking at Sokka. The Watertribe boy ignored him, turning his head away.

"So, which way?" Asked Mai. Zuko looked to Sokka.

"Well? Which way did they go?" He asked. Sokka looked up, then out into the forest.

"They went that way." Said Sokka, pointing south. "But I feel like we should head that way towards the mountains." Zuko turned his head east, looking at the gloomy clouds gathering in the sky. The grey stone jutted out above the trees, menacing and bleak.

"Why would we go to the mountain?" He asked. Sokka shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know, I just have a feeling, that's all." Toph snorted.

"Ohh, you have a feeling, huh? What, did you leave your whore over there?" Sokka stood up, his face indignant.

"Listen hear you little tramp!" Started Sokka, a mess of voices and hands reaching in as the two came at each other. Toph managed to land a fist on Sokka's jaw, making him stumble backwards. The group pulled the two apart, Jack and Ty-Lee holding onto Toph while Aang and Mai restrained Sokka. Zuko stood between them, his hands raised.

"Cool it!" He yelled, the two yelling at each other. Toph clamped her mouth shut, glaring at Sokka. Zuko shot Sokka a look as he opened his mouth to say something. A second later the boy closed it.

"Thank you!" Said Zuko, letting out a steady breath. "Now, let's focus. Sokka, why do you think we should go to the mountains?" Sokka shrugged off Mai and Aang, Mai slipping a knife back into her sleeve.

"I don't know why. All I do know is that last night I felt drawn to that mountain, and the next morning I was bleeding and banged up."

"You could have just tripped over your feet." Muttered Toph. Zuko shot her a look, making her turn her eyes to the ground. He turned back around to Sokka, staring at him to make sure he did not try anything.

"There's something over there in the mountain, we should go check it out." Finished Sokka, turning away. Zuko turned to Jack and Mai, raising an eyebrow.

"What do you think we should do?" He asked. Jack shrugged his shoulders.

"Put the two in a room together until they sort it out or one of them is dead." Zuko frowned.

"Not helping." Jack smiled.

"Sorry." He turned to Mai.

"What do you think?" Mai looked between first Toph then Sokka, staring off into the forest.

"Send Jack and me after the brothers, you take the rest and go to the mountains. Watertribe might be right about this." Sokka smiled, then frowned as he realized that he might have just been insulted. Toph perked up behind Ty-Lee, pushing the acrobat to the side.

"Wait, you want me to go with sleaze-bag?" Sokka turned red.

"No." Said Zuko, trying to keep things under control. "I'm asking you to come with me. So suck it up and get ready to head out, got it?" Toph shut her mouth, a frown settling across her lips. Zuko turned to the others.

"Anyone else have any complaints?" They all shook their heads, mouths closed. "Good, now let's get a move on, I want to find both my sister and Katara before nightfall." The others got up, moving off. Zuko turned and grabbed Mai's hand as she went by.

"Be careful. Meet back at camp by high-moon." He said, giving her a kiss. Mai patted him on the cheek, giving him a sly smile as she walked off with the diamondbender in tow. He watched as they disappeared into the foliage, the sound of the footsteps quickly receding. Turning to the rest of the group he led them off in silence, marching towards the mountain, and whatever lay in wait.

* * *

><p>Pain flared through her body with every heartbeat. It felt as if someone had stabbed her with flaming pokers, her nerves burning with every twitch. She was being dragged across stone, her feet, now bare, cutting against the cold, jagged, rock. Her eyelids flopped as she tried to open them, unconsciousness holding on to her. Eventually she felt herself fall into a heap, her body shivering as the warmth was sucked out of her. Voices began speaking around her, their words incoherent and blurred.<p>

Eventually she managed to move her fingers, her nails breaking against the rock below her. Shaking, she first raised one hand, then the other, bracing herself and pushing up, forcing her body to a sitting position. Once there she wobbled, her balance unsteady. She was just trying to open her eyes when something freezing cold splashed into her face, shaking off the drowsiness from her body. She coughed and spluttered, shaking her head as water dripped down her face and onto her clothing.

Right as she opened her eyes she felt the water sucked away from her, leaving her dry and cold. She shivered as she looked up, the dark cavern glowing slightly with green and blue tones. Looking around, she noticed three figures, standing ahead of her in the gloom, a bucket of full water resting in one of their grasps. The person set the bucket down with a clatter, a black flame leaping to life in one of the men's hands.

"Well, well, well. Hello my dear." Said a man, his face scarred. He came up to her, blonde hair bobbing about on his head as he kneeled down.

"I dare say that I'm sorry for that little fiasco back there. I hadn't meant to have you abducted so roughly, but these boys are rather…apt to escalate things." Katara blinked, looking at the menacing face.

"Joshua?" She said. The man laughed, flicking the fire to his left and right. Torches lit up in bright orange flames, illuminating the cave they sat in. Joshua stood up, spreading out his thin, long, arms.

He gave a flourishing bow. "At your service." Katara tried to get herself to her feet, but she tumbled over, her toes bruised and cut. Joshua reached out and caught her, setting her back down.

"Easy there deary, I wouldn't want you to damage that beautiful face of yours." He said, taking a step back. Katara sat on her knees, staring up at him.

"Why? You want to do it yourself?" She asked, resistance in her voice. Joshua smiled.

"Ohh, you got spunk, I like that." Katara offered him the best glare she could muster, staring him down. It merely made him laugh.

"If looks could kill I'd be a dead man." Said Joshua.

"I thought you already were." She replied, watching as Joshua's countenance fell. The man frowned, staring at her. She jumped as his eyes turned black for a moment; the spirit.

"Careful lass, I'm not someone to be tested." Said Joshua, his voice low and unnatural, resonating as if with an echo. Katara swallowed. Perhaps it was best to not upset the homicidal bender with an angry spirit inside of him.

Joshua shook his head, his face lifting once more. He turned around, looking back at the two figures behind him.

"San-Lee, San-Jin, is that blood on her feet I see?" He said. Katara remembered the men from the clearing. They had been airbenders. She looked up, peering at them, surprised to see how young they both were. When they had been fighting Sokka they had just seemed so much…older.

"Sorry Joshua, but we kinda had to drag her in here." Said the one on the right, light blue arrows running along his hands.

"Had to drag her in here?" replied Joshua. "Why did you have to drag her in here?" The other brother took his turn to respond.

"She woke up once while we were carrying her and head-butted me in the face. I decided that perhaps if her feet were a bit more cut up she wouldn't feel so inclined to run." Katara tried to remember the incident, but it was fuzzy. That must have been when she had lost her shoes. Joshua tisked.

"San-Jin, that's not how we treat our guests." Said Joshua, gathering water into his hands. The liquid began to glow red as he came to Katara, bending down on his knee.

"Now, if you would be so kind as to let me see those bruised feet of yours." He said, his face next to hers.

Katara recoiled at the smell of burnt flesh coming from his mouth. "I think I'm fine." She replied. Joshua frowned.

"I think you're under the impression that this is an option." He said, the water beginning to freeze. Katara took a deep breath, leaning back on her hands and sticking her feet out. Joshua smiled, giving her a curt nod.

She braced herself as his hands approached her feet, ready for the pain that was to follow, but it never came. A calming sensation ran through her, her feet turning to ice, then melting, the pain running off like water. A sigh escaped her lips as Joshua pulled his hands away.

"There, that wasn't so bad, now was it?" He said, throwing the water back into the bucket. Katara raised herself to her feet, her toes fine and fresh. She wiggled them, checking for any ill effects, but nothing arose. She felt fine, she didn't think she had an evil spirit inside of her. Looking at Joshua, she began to wonder. What was he up to?

Joshua must have noticed her look, laughing as he began to walk towards the back. "Ohh, please, don't do that to me. I can still be courteous." He said, waving her towards him as he walked down the tunnel. "Come."

Katara paused a moment, looking at the dark tunnel lying behind her. The two brothers came up, each grabbing a torch. They stood on either side of her, staring at her. She was pretty sure that the one with black hair was daring her to run.

Holding her head up, she made her way after Joshua, walking with a slight tremble. Joshua led her down the tunnel, blue and green crystals vibrating slightly on either side of them, casting glowing hues as they went past. One of them, a yellow crystal, sparked as she went by, a moment later an image of herself appearing before her in the tunnel, glowing yellow. She stood stunned, marveling at the image; it moved as she moved, a perfect reflection of her. When she reached out her hand it passed through it, glowing yellow.

One of the airbenders came up to her, shoving her along. It was Mr. Black Hair. Katara glared at him, but continued on, looking back at the image as she walked. Right before it disappeared it waved at her, evaporating in a flash.

"What…?" Black hair pushed her again, preventing her from inquiring of the strange image.

Eventually the group made their way to an open cavern, sunlight streaming in from an opening up ahead. Katara blinked, the light blinding after the dim tunnels.

Joshua walked over to a plain wooden chair, sitting down. He looked at Katara, a smile spread across his lips.

"Please, come, sit." He said, motioning to a chair by him. Katara looked around, eyeing the entrance. Joshua followed her gaze, chuckling.

"You can go ahead and try, but unless you've managed to acquire airbending in the past few minutes I don't think it will do you any good." Katara looked at Joshua, then made her way slowly over to the entrance. The two airbenders stood close behind her.

She gasped as she looked down over the mountainside to the forest floor, at least eight-hundred feet below. Wind began to whip past her, catching her hair and throwing her off balance. A hand shot out and grabbed her, pulling her back inside before she toppled over the edge.

She spun around to see the brown haired airbender holding her hand, a shy smile spread across his face.

"Hi there." He said. Katara took in a deep breath, calming her racing heart.

"Thank you." She said. The boy gave a little bow.

"Anything miss." Katara turned to Joshua, walking over and taking the seat by him. He grinned coyly at her.

"Told you." He looked down at her shaking hands. "Nervous?" He asked.

Katara ignored his question, focusing on steadying her trembling hands. She was currently in a cave high up in the mountains with a psychopathic murder and two airbenders hidden away from all her friends and without any bending. Of course she was nervous!

Joshua reached out and patted her hand, grabbing it. "Don't worry, I don't want to hurt you." He said. Katara pulled her hand away, shoving it in her lap.

"Then why did you send your two goons to kidnap me?" She asked. The smaller of the two snickered, pointing at his brother.

"I just wanted them to bring you here so I could talk with you, that's all. Apparently they thought that constituted the need to abduct you in a rather…barbaric manner." Said Joshua. Katara looked at them, watching as the older brother smacked the younger one over the head. It didn't stop the snickering.

"Where did you find them? I thought all airbenders were extinct." Joshua chuckled.

"They said the same thing about my people, but I'm still here." Katara watched as the two airbenders began to tussle, the larger one picking the smaller one up and walked over to the entrance. Her heart leapt into her throat as she watched the older brother toss his younger brother out of the entrance, turning around and dusting his hands off as the other boy plummeted down.

Joshua chuckled at her shocked expression. "Don't worry, San-Lee is crafty, he'll be fine." A few moments later one of the boy's hands shot up over the ledge, pulling himself up. The boy brought himself back into the cave with a burst of air, his hair wild and blown back, exposing the blue arrow on his forehead. He smiled over at her.

"They're always doing things of the such." Said Joshua. "Now then, if we could get down to business." Katara turned to Joshua, raising an eyebrow.

"What business?" She asked.

"Why, the negotiation to leave me alone with Azula, of course." Katara blinked.

"You want to negotiate for someone you already have?" Joshua chuckled, slicking his blonde hair back with a bony white hand.

"I know Zuko, better than you I dare say, and believe me when I tell you that he won't stop hunting me until either he's dead or he's got Azula back." Katara did not argue. Zuko was rather stubborn, even when it came to his crazy sister.

"Alright, so you want us to lay off your back. Why don't you just kill us? You took away our bending, except for Sokka, who apparently you gave bending to." Joshua looked at her, confused.

"Your brother can bend?" He asked.

"Uhm…ya, that was your doing, wasn't it?" Joshua looked over at one of the airbenders.

"Is this true?" The one named San-Lee nodded his head. Joshua swore underneath his breath, making Katara suspicious.

"What did you do to my brother?" She asked, narrowing her eyes. Joshua waved her off.

"I assure you that it was not me who did this to him." He replied.

"Then how did he get bending?" She demanded. Joshua shrugged his shoulders.

"Who's to say; perhaps he got it from one of his lovers." Katara closed her mouth, caught off guard by his remark. Had he been spying on them?

Joshua noticed the look on her face, laughing once more.

"Dear girl, did you really think that I just left you all alone without any consideration? They obviously have not told you much about me." Said Joshua, standing up. He began to stride about, speaking to her with wide and grand gestures as he spoke of himself.

"I am quite the perfectionist. Nothing is left to chance. Every minute detail is underneath my scrutiny. I'm also known for my cunning intellect and fiery temper, but that can be set aside for the moment. What I want, and this is important mind you, is to just have Azula and be left alone." He said, turning to her. "That's it." Katara raised an eyebrow.

"Why do I think it's not that simple?" Joshua tutted.

"But it is, it is my dear." He said, coming back over to her. Katara frowned, getting sick and tired of being referred to as 'dear'.

Joshua leaned up close to her, placing his hand on top of hers. "I just want Azula, promise, honest and truly, that's all I want." He said, his voice earnest. Katara pulled her hand out from his bony clutch, standing up and backing away from him.

"If that's all you wanted then why did you kill Suki? Why did you go back to the palace? Why did you toss my brother in a demon infested tunnel?" Joshua shrugged his shoulders, thinking about it a moment.

"Hanging Suki was…necessary. And for the other things it was just part of a plan that, to be honest, was a bit convoluted." Katara wasn't buying it. This guy was up to something, he always was up to something!

She shook her head, backing further up. "I still don't believe you." She said, stopping as she neared the edge. Wind whipped up past her, catching her hair and making her sway slightly. Joshua smiled.

"Well, I don't need you to believe me, I just need you to believe what you've seen. Like you've said yourself, I've had ample opportunity to kill you and your friends; you have no bending, I had both your brother and that blind earthbender, yet I didn't kill them. Come on, trust your instinct, you know I don't really want to hurt you." He said, offering her his best smile.

Katara swallowed, trying to keep herself calm. The problem was that she saw what he was talking about. It actually did seem like he was telling the truth, but she knew she couldn't think that way. Joshua never told the truth, he always lied. He was just like Azula, and that's how she had to keep it. Someone who was always playing the angle, looking for the advantage, trying to push some hidden agenda.

However, at the moment, she had to consider her situation. She was trapped in here with three psycho-benders who could kill her within a moment's notice. She needed to buy time until the others could find her and rescue her, if they could find her.

She looked up at Joshua, taking a step away from the edge. "Alright, but you need to let me think about all of this. It's rather much, you know." Joshua smiled, reaching out a hand.

"Of course my dear. Please, I've got the perfect place for you to ponder upon these developments." Katara reached out hesitantly, taking his cold hand. It closed around her fingers like a vise, leading her on with a gentle tug.

Walking down past several other tunnels and doorways, Joshua led her to a wooden door, metal bars in the window. He took out a key, fitting it into the lock and twisting, the gears grinding and opening with a stiff push.

"Here you are." He said, waving into the room. Katara took in a deep breath, stepping into the small, stone, room, an idle torch sitting on the wall. Joshua tisked.

"My, my, I forgot to light the room." He said, snapping his fingers and sending a black spark onto the torch. A moment later it bloomed into life, orange flames illuminating the bare cell. Katara turned back to him.

"Thank you for the room." She said, sitting down cross-legged. Joshua smiled.

"Well, don't get too comfortable, you're about to have a roommate." He said, closing the door. Katara listened as the gears ground back into place and his footsteps receded, leaving her alone in the dank cell.

She looked about at the plain room, pondering upon her situation and her options at the moment. The ideal plan, for the time being, was to stall Joshua until the others showed up and rescued her. However, the natural problem with that plan was the assumption that the others were going to find her. For all she knew Sokka could have just wondered off and forgotten about her, or he might have passed out, or one of the airbenders might have killed him. Even if he was out there searching for her there was no way that he kept up with them, which meant that he would have to try and track her down by following their trail. Oddly enough that was not a reassuring thought.

One of the other options she had before her was to devise her own escape plan. Of course, without bending or a weapon of any sorts, disregarding the fact that even if she did have a weapon she wouldn't know what to do with it, the odds of her escaping here were pretty slim. Even if she did manage to get out of her cell she would have to sneak past the three lunatics and find the correct tunnel out, unless she decided on flying. And even then she would have to make it back to the others before one of the airbenders caught up with her, and there was no guarantee that she could outrun them.

So, that left her with her last option. To trick Joshua. Of course, it was a lot easier said than done. If what they said about this guy was true and he was as crazy as they all thought then this guy would be so paranoid that he would suspect anything she said as a ploy. Who knows, he might have already guessed her intention in asking for time to think about it, there really wasn't any way to tell. He might let her go just to try some different angle or plot. Who knew?

Katara let her head lay against the cold stone, letting out a breath. She needed to calm down. She was overthinking everything, just like Joshua did. All she had to do was keep her eye open, and when the opportunity arose she would have to take it. That's all there was to it.

Submitting herself to her fate, Katara closed her eyes, trying to relax and rest. The sound of boots walking down the hall, however, brought her back to the door of the cell. The key was inserted once more, the door being swung open and banged shut, but not before something could be thrown in. It landed roughly on the floor, a pained noise escaping it.

Katara gasped as she recognized Azula, her clothes in tatters, her back shredded with lashes and blood. The girl was unconscious at the moment, her cheek pressed against the stone.

Katara came over to her, turning her over and laying her head in her lap. She looked down at Azula's bruised face, blood smeared across her pale skin, red flowing from a busted lip. Her left eye lay black and swollen, her raven hair soaked and clinging to her head. Labored breaths came from her mouth and nose, blood trickling down her chin.

"Azula, Azula! Can you hear me?" Asked Katara, whispering softly in the girl's ear. Azula did not stir, remaining still in Katara's grasp. Katara could feel a tear snake down her chin as pity welled up inside of her, looking at the broken and shattered form below her. Sure she didn't like Azula, and sure a lot of things that Azula had done were evil, but seeing her like this, so tender, so broken, it was just wrong. No one deserved to be tormented like this, not Joshua, not Jack, and not Azula.

She shook her head. If only she had her bending, she could heal some of her wounds. But she had nothing, so all she could do was sit and hold her, gently stroking Azula's hair, brushing it back behind her ear.

Eventually, as time passed, Azula began to stir, her right eye slowly cracking open. Katara looked down at her, offering her a smile.

"Are you okay?" She asked, realizing a moment later that it was a rather foolish question to ask. Azula moved, backing up against the wall with a grimace. The girl turned and stared her down, her body shaking slightly.

"What are you doing here?" Asked Azula, bringing her tattered clothes about her, covering the cuts and bruises. Katara sat up straight, clearing her throat.

"I was kidnapped by two airbenders." She said, watching Azula. The girl snorted at her, cringing a moment later at the pain. Katara reached forward, intent on helping her.

"Are you okay?" She asked again. Azula smacked her hand away, offering her a vehement stare.

"Stay away from me! When have you ever been concerned about me?" Katara drew back.

"Look, I know we didn't get along in the past, but we need each other at the moment." Azula frowned.

"I don't need you, I've never needed you. Besides, why should I trust you, you always liked Zuko best." Katara raised an eyebrow, confused.

"Well, ya, he did make up for being a jerk. You on the other hand were always against me." Azula blinked.

"So you admit it, you were conspiring with Zuko against me." Katara grunted.

"I didn't think it was such a big secret. You were nuts, you had to be taken down." Katara looked at Azula as she began struggling for words. Something clear started to trail down her cheek. She finally managed something.

"You think I'm a monster, don't you?" Katara tried to think of a reassuring response, but all she could come up with was the truth.

"Yes, I do think you're a monster, but just a misguided one." She added, watching as pain crossed Azula's face. "You can change, really, you can, and I can help." She said. Azula waved her off, tears streaming out of her good eye.

"No. I don't need you!" Snapped Azula, turning her face away from Katara. Katara watched her for a few moments as her shoulders heaved up and down, the only sound in the room that of her shaking body. Eventually she turned back to Katara.

"Did you ever love me?" Asked Azula, softly. Katara sat back, shocked. She fumbled around for a few moments, trying to find the proper response. How did you reply to that?!

"I…uhh…what?" She asked, scooting further back into the stone wall. Azula merely shook her head, turning herself away.

"I can't believe it." Mumbled Azula. "Even my own mother hates me." Katara sat stunned for a moment. What was going on? She looked at Azula, titling her head. Did Azula think that she was Ursa? Katara held up her hands.

"Wait, hold on a moment Azula. I'm not your mother." She said. Azula whirled on her, fire leaping from her open eye.

"How can you say that?! Did I mean nothing to you? Am I such a disgrace that you cast me out and away from the family? Because I'm not like your precious Zuko?" Katara shook her head.

"No, no, Azula, that's not it! I'm really not your mother!" She said. "It's me, Katara, the snow peasant?" She pointed at her face, offering her a smile, trying to jog her memory. Azula narrowed her eye.

"You mean, you're not Ursa?" Katara nodded her head.

"Yes, yes! I'm Katara, the waterbender? Remember?" Azula drew back, looking at her curiously.

"If you're a waterbender, then that means you're from one of the water-tribes." Katara nodded her head again.

"Yes, exactly! I'm from the southern Watertribe!" A sinister glint sparked in Azula's battered face, an unnerving smile spreading across her busted lips.

"That means Zuko is not of the royal lineage." She said. Katara sat back, confused once more.

"Wait, what?"

"What did you do, give my mother that child? Was he born from an unholy spawn of fire and water? And when you saw that he was destined to burn with flames you gave him away? My mother always did have a soft spot for orphans. I bet you knew her." Katara just shook her head, following none of this.

"Azula, it's me!" She yelled, daring to lean over and slap the girl. Azula sat back, stunned. Her hand reached up and touched her cheek, her good eye glinting at Katara.

Katara sat back and watched, hoping that the smack had snapped her out of her hallucinations.

"Snow peasant?" Said Azula, her face perplexed. Katara sighed, leaning back against the wall.

"Yes! Finally, you're back." Katara watched as Azula looked around at the cell, raising a hand to touch her swollen eye. She winced, drawing her hand back.

"So, you were captured as well." Said Azula, leaning back against the wall. Katara nodded her head.

"Ya, two airbenders grabbed me." Azula nodded her head.

"Same here." They sat silent for a few moments, Azula gazing about the cell.

"You have your bending?" Asked Katara. Azula shook her head.

"And I doubt you do either?" Katara shook her head. Great, that left them there, in a cell, in the mountain, with no bending, and a bunch of lunatics.

Katara looked back over at Azula, looking up and down her broken body. "How do you feel?" Azula laughed, or at least tried to, the noise ending with pained coughing.

"How do you think I feel peasant? I wasn't exactly playing chess with the man now was I?" Katara closed her mouth. Wrong question to ask.

"What do you think we should do?" She asked after a few more moments of silence. Azula ignored her, looking over at the torch on the wall, stretching out a hand and swirling her finger. The flame began to wave.

"I thought you just said you can't bend?" Hissed Katara, crawling over to Azula. She sat up against the wall next to her, looking at the base of the door to see if anyone was coming. Azula drew her hand back in, the torch still flickering on the wall.

"It was just a suspicion. Whatever he did to us is in our blood; the sooner it's replaced with new blood the sooner we get our bending back." Katara looked at Azula's bleeding body.

"That's why you have your bending back, because of the torture." Azula grinned mischievously.

"You should have heard some of the things I came up with. Got him quite irate." Katara looked over at the door.

"I bet." She said, imagining some of the things Azula would say. It wasn't pleasant, even in her head.

"That means that you can attack them the next time they come back here." She whispered. Azula laughed mockingly in her face.

"You fool, I've only have the barest hint of bending back. Even Zuzu could do better than me at the moment. It's going to take a lot longer before I'm back to my normal, glorious, self." Katara leaned back, deflated. She had thought that they were going to get out of here pretty quick. Azula noticed the look on her face, tisking.

"Ohh, did you expect to escape now that I have my bending? Well, I'm sorry to say that we're going to have to spend some more time here. Of course." Said Azula, leaning her head back. "I'm the one that has to take all the knocks." Katara frowned, moving back over across the cell. She looked around, holding her hand out in front of her. She wiggled her fingers around, trying to feel her bending come back to her. It wasn't working.

"I'm going to get my bending back too, right?" She asked, her nerves feeling dull. Azula shrugged her shoulders.

"More than likely. Not that it'll do us much good."

"What do you mean by that?" Asked Katara, annoyed. Azula smirked.

"Let's just say that you're not the best person to have at the moment. Surrounded by rock with almost no water anywhere?" Katara thought about it for a moment, realizing that she was right.

"Ohh." She said softly.

"I'd rather have the little blind girl, she would at least be of some use to me." Katara leaned further back into the wall, sighing.

"Well, you don't have her, you got me. So get used to the idea." Azula frowned.

"I'm trying."


	4. Violence, it's a Water-Tribe Thing

**Chapter XIV**

He could feel those eyes, those menacing eyes. They were burning a hole in the back of his skull, fire sparking from her unnoticed glare. It was like a green flame, crackling with such intensity that the very air sparked, and it was irritating the heck out of him!

He endured it for as long as he could, taking it in silence, trying to focus on marching on through the woods. Twigs snapped underfoot, needles rustling with his footfalls. The sweet, crisp, aroma of the woods wafted up through his nostrils. The yellow rays of the sun reached down to him, warming him with its glowing tendrils. And then there were those emerald daggers plunging into his back, willing him to drop dead.

Finally he had had enough. He just could not take it anymore, something had to be done. Whirling around, he glared at the culprit, her eyes meeting his. "Would you knock it off!? I'm sick and tired of feeling you stare right down my back!" Toph frowned, crossing her arms. Her emerald eyes sparkled at him, cold and menacing.

"Sorry Snoozles but you're kinda in the lead. I have to look at you. Though I did prefer it when I didn't have to see your ugly mug." Sokka growled.

"Why don't you look at the ground since you're so fond of it?" He asked, red dancing through his vision like waves of blood. Toph snorted.

"How about I pound you into the ground so I could at least tolerate you?" She retorted. Sokka let his hand fall down to his water skin, intent on flicking off the cap and giving this arrogant upstart what for.

A hand shot out and grabbed his, preventing him from completing the movement. He looked up to see Zuko's fierce golden eyes, staring him down.

"Don't even think about it." Growled Zuko, squeezing his hand in a death-grip. Sokka could feel the blood rush out of his wrist and to the rest of his body. His fingertips began to tingle with needles after a few more moments.

"Alright." He muttered, moving his hand away. Zuko let go, the blood rushing back to his fingers.

"Good, now keep moving." Sokka cast one last glare at Toph then turned around, marching off towards the mountains.

They had been walking for almost an hour now, reaching the base of the mountain, and the entire time the others had glared at him angrily. He knew that they all blamed him for losing Katara and more than likely wanted to pound him into a pulp. However, he just couldn't find the emotions to care. His sister was captured, big deal. She would be fine, just like all the other times stuff had happened to her. She had that knack for getting out of hazardous situations without much harm, something that he couldn't claim.

After a few more minutes the forest gave out, leaving just rocky terrain. As they reached the stone the sky turned dark, the bright sun hiding its face behind thick black clouds. There was a rumble and thunder in the distance, the sweet smell of rain carried on the warm breeze. It was going to be a pleasant hike.

Sokka continued on, following the strange tug in his gut. It had started as a queer feeling when they had first stared out, which had made him suggest the mountains in the first place. As they had went on, however, it had grown until it was like a lump inside his intestines, physically pulling him one way or another. At times it even caused him to stumble, pulling on him so hard that he was caught off balance. Every time he did fall he heard a snicker behind him, from whom he did not know, but it was quite tiring.

At last, as they climbed the mountain, Sokka felt the urge inside of him ascend to his head. Crimson tides began to wash over his vision and he began to feel woozy. They battered against his mind like hammers, bashing into his being and forcing themselves upon him like soldiers plundering a town. They poured in their foul contents, filling him with rage, hate, spite, envy. All thoughts turned to others, to his companions, how he so wished he could burn their meager little lives, to cause them pain on an incomprehensible level. He could not stand the thought of their happiness; they did not deserve such a thing, only pain, and torment. Just as he had suffered, burning inside a tunnel filled with horror, they too should be cast in, left to fend for themselves against those haunting images. Hell to them! Hell and fire and brimstone, they all deserved it, every last one of them!

Sokka stopped, blinking. Clarity came like a white flood, washing through his mind and easing his thoughts. It drove away his crimson stains in a torrent, calming him and letting him breathe once more. What had he been thinking? That time in the tunnel had been horrendous, intolerable. He had barely managed to get away from Spooky with his sanity, if that. It had been a miracle that he had managed to carry Toph out of there. Why would he wish that upon his friends? There was no reason for him to be angry with them. In fact, if anything, it was the reverse; they should be angry with him. And now that he thought about it he was pretty sure they were.

He had not been the most amiable person of late. Several occasions came to mind of him, drunk, cursing and screaming at Katara and Aang as they came to him, concerned for his welfare. He had even thrown a few bottles at them, luckily too wasted to hit them, but still, the intent was there. There had also been the onetime thing with Ty-Lee where he not only gave up his purity but hers as well. What right had he to that? Or the innumerable other women that he had been with over the past six months, what right did he have to them? How could he justify doing that to them, as if he owned them?

No right, that's what he had. Absolutely no right. They weren't his wives, he wasn't their husbands. He had no business sleeping around with them, and the worst part about it was that he knew that to begin with! How could he just throw away a lifetime's struggle for a few moments of pleasure? He shook his head, confused. What had happened to him?

His foot snagged on a stone beneath him, sending him falling to the ground. He reached out, his hands grating against the sharp rock, blood seeping out of his palms. He swore, shaking his head as he pushed himself to his knees. Great, just great, this was exactly what he needed, bleeding hands. That would just put him in the perfect mood for self-contemplation.

"Dirty damn mountain." He muttered, wiping the blood off on one of his pant legs. He blinked as he got back up to his feet, the wind rushing past him, a few drops of warm rain falling on his face. The air felt thinner already, his breath a bit ragged. Man, how fast did the air run out up here? They had just started up the mountain.

Turning around, Sokka was shocked to see the others far down below, climbing as fast as they could to catch up with him. Perspiration licked at his brow, dripping down his face and into his eye, where the salt stung him. He ran the back of his hand over his forehead, his chest heaving up and down as he caught his breath. How had he gotten so high up?

He looked around at where he was standing, the rocks jutting out like fangs all about. They were black and bleak, different from the rest, tainted by something. Ahead of him lay an opening to a cave, a strange luminescence glowing from within. It was unnatural, ghostly. It reminded him of the time he had seen Aang in one of his avatar states. It was spirit magic.

Sokka felt the need to go forward, the urge building once more inside of him. His feet slowly began to drag towards the entrance of the tunnel, its mouth opening to swallow him whole. His mind was screaming at him to turn around, to run off, but he just couldn't help himself. He had to go inside, to be reunited with…something.

Each footstep sent a shiver through his body, like thunder rippling through the ground. His body was weak, shaking, every muscle crying out in resistance, but it was no use. With every passing moment his feet brought him closer and before he knew it he was at the mouth, blue and green light creeping out and touching the ground at his feet.

He was just about to go in when a pair of hands grabbed him, yanking him back. "Sokka!" Cried a voice.

He whirled around, popping the cap off of his skin, the water coming out in a fluid movement. Without even think he flicked his wrists forward, the water turning to ice with a breath and stabbing into someone's shoulder. The person fell back with a cry, landing on the ground. It was Aang.

The boy grabbed at his shoulder, tears leaping into his eyes as red stained his shawl. Sokka stood stunned, his hand twitching. Had he just hurt Aang?

Aang cried out, gritting his teeth against the pain. The others soon followed, hauling themselves up the last edge and sprinting over. Zuko went directly over to Aang, shoving a hand over the boy's mouth and hushing him. Toph, on the other hand, went straight for Sokka, dropping her shoulder and crashing full on into him.

She sent him flying into the mountainside, the cold, hard, stone cutting into his shoulder. His head whipped against the rock, blood dripping down into his eye as he fell to his knees. Blackness was beginning to surround him, taking him into the abyss, but a hurricane of red came over him, making his eyes spring open.

He leapt back up to his feet, whirling on Toph as his rage leant him energy. The girl stood there, fists at the ready, daring him to come at her. Sokka accepted her challenge, rushing up to her and leaping off of his feet. She side stepped his attack letting him role on the ground and get back to his feet.

He reached out a hand and whipped the ice shard in Aang's shoulder into water, catching Toph by the feet. He pulled and sent her to the ground, leaping on top of her a moment later.

Toph tried to defend herself, throwing a few punches and blocking as best she could, but without her bending she wasn't a match for him. He rained blows down on her, one after the other, landing solid blows on her face and jaw. Blood began to pour out of her nose after another blow, her feeble punches merely brushing against his face. Grabbing her by the collar, he hauled her up towards him, raising his hand back for a finishing blow.

He paused for a moment, looking at her bruised face. Her right eye already was red and swollen, plump like a cherry. Blood rushed down her face and over her cracked lips, a purple bruise developing on her left cheek. Her eyes did not waver, staring into his with a fierce emerald glow. She spat in his face, blood mixing in with the saliva, landing squarely on his mouth.

Raising his fist back, he was about to land the blow, when suddenly something crashed into the side of him. His arms were yanked back, two legs reaching around and wrapping themselves around his torso. They squeezed tight, his ribs cracking like brittle rocks beneath the pressure. He tried to reach back but his arms were trapped, unable to move. A voice breathed in his ear.

"Calm down!" Sokka refused to listen, thrashing about. Throwing his head back, he connected with whoever's forehead it was behind him, eliciting a pained grunt. The person returned it by releasing his arm and putting him in a rear naked chokehold. Sokka began struggling for breath, clawing at the muscled arm as the bicep squeezed across his throat. His vision began to blacken, spots dancing before his eyes. He finally tapped, loosing and ending his resistance.

The person was hesitant at first, but as they relaxed Sokka remained still. Finally the person let go all together, pushing him to the side.

Sokka rolled on the stone, coughing and catching his breath. His head throbbed like heartbeat, oxygen flowing back into his mind and calming him. He reached out a cut hand, placing it against the stone. A stinging sensation followed as he pushed himself up with a grunt, his arms shaking as he stood.

Breathing deep, he turned around, looking at Zuko's ragged hair, tossed about. The Fire-Lord stood across from him, a lump developing on his forehead, eyes still. Toph stood right next to him, glowering with a beaten face, blood trickling down her chin. Aang sat back by the entrance to the tunnel, a hand pressed against his shoulder, red liquid dripping out between his fingers. Sokka realized that he had done all of that. He opened his mouth, closing it a moment later as copper dripped into his mouth. He ran a hand over his head, wiping off the blood. It sat on his fingertips, crimson before his eyes. A tiny wisp of black floated away with the breeze.

"You done?" Sokka looked up, meeting Zuko's glare. Hostility glowed like a fire in his golden eyes, obviously displeased with what had just happened. Sokka nodded his head, removing the water skin.

"Here, take this." He said, tossing it over to Zuko. The man grabbed it out of the air, popping the cap back on and slinging it over his shoulder. Sokka started walking over to them, avoiding Toph's emerald eyes. He looked over at Aang, the boy giving him a pained grimace.

"I'm…I'm sorry." He mumbled, coming up to the others. Toph started to walk over at him, but Zuko stepped in between them, pushing her back. Sokka bowed his head, realizing that he had let his anger get the best of him once again. Was it ever going to change?

Zuko turned and walked over to Aang, unslinging the backpack on his back. Sokka walked over to Aang, looking up at the airbender.

"Aang, I'm…" Aang just shook his head, grimacing as Zuko began to wrap the wound, tying the airbenders arm to his chest so he couldn't aggravate his shoulder.

"What was going through your head?" Said Zuko, giving one last tug on the bandage. Sokka shook his head, running a hand over his soaked hair. He flicked his wrist, flinging the sweat away from his head.

"I don't know. I was just walking up the mountain and the next thing I knew I was standing up here, outside that tunnel." He said, pointing to the ominous looking cave. Zuko looked over, taking in a deep breath.

"You were moving pretty fast back there. You're telling me you don't remember flying up that mountainside?" Sokka shook his head. He had no recollection of any climb.

"Like I told you, all I remember is walking at the bottom then standing outside this tunnel."

"You were about to go inside." Said Aang, grunting. Zuko placed a hand on the airbender's good shoulder, giving him a little pat. Sokka turned and looked into the tunnel, the urge to go inside one again falling upon him. It reached into his heart and pulled at some hidden chord, the sorrow of his past actions draining out of him like water on rock. He was going back to jerk mode.

"I was." He said, his feet tingling. Zuko looked inside the tunnel, looking back at Aang.

"We need to get Aang back to camp." Sokka nodded his head, not really paying attention.

"Whatever Zuko." He said, his feet once more making their way to the tunnel. Zuko came over and grabbed him by the arm, turning him back around.

"Sokka, focus! We need to get Aang back down the mountain and to camp, he's hurt."

"No thanks to you." Said Toph, her speech a bit slurred. She spat a glob of saliva and blood on the ground.

"Besides." Said Zuko, continuing on. "You're hurt as well." Sokka raised an eyebrow.

"I'm fine." He said. Zuko rolled his eyes.

"Look at your side!" Sokka raised his arms, alarm spreading through him as he noticed the red trying to force its way out through the white. There was no pain, however, it was eerily numb.

He shook his head, the draw of the tunnel becoming stronger and stronger. "We need to go inside." He said.

"No! We need to get back to camp, now!" Sokka looked at Zuko, then at Aang, noticing the pain on the boy's face. Relinquishing, he nodded his head, letting out a weary sigh. Zuko grunted.

"Good, now let's get out of here." The firebender picked Aang up gently, carrying the boy over to the edge.

"You're going to have to hold on to me." Said Zuko. Aang said something back to him but Sokka didn't notice. A strange noise had begun to echo in his head, a melodic tune enchanting him and turning his head. It came from the tunnel, a sweet harmonious noise, like water rushing over crystal. Without even thinking he turned and sprinted, rushing into the tunnel before the others could stop him. He heard Zuko call out and a set of feet give chase after him, but he wasn't stopping.

Streaking through the entrance, he descended into a sea of blue and green, the dim lights almost black against the brightness of the sun. Crystals shone on either side of him, vibrating and echoing the song. It rang in his ears, drowning out his thoughts, making him rush further and further into the tunnel. Without thinking he made turns and corners, unaware that someone was keeping pace with him, rushing up behind him as best they could. Finally, right as he was about to round another corner, they caught him, a hand reaching out and grabbing his collar.

He whirled around, trying to swing at whoever held him, but he missed, his fist flying into the wall instead. The pain flashed white through his head, clearing him of the haunting tune. He stopped, swearing and holding his fist close to him. Slowly he lifted it up, looking at it in the dim light; a couple of his knuckles looked as if they were positioned like they shouldn't be. He swore again, tucking his fist into his stomach and bending over. The person who had caught him merely grunted.

"Serves you right you meathead." Sokka looked up to see Toph's diminutive form in the crystals pale light. She stood panting, arms crossed, glaring at him with the best austerity she could muster.

"What the hell do you want?" He breathed, realizing that he was panting as well. The air was warm to breathe, dry and hot. It almost felt as if a fire was burning further beneath them, or before them. It was difficult to tell now that they were below ground.

"Look Meathead, I know we both hate each other and all, but at the moment we need to work together. As much as I would love to see Sugar-Queen get put in her place I'm afraid we're going to have to get her back. I prefer a live and condescending Sugar-Queen to a beaten and dead one." Sokka bit his tongue and held back a response, realizing that Toph was right. They were going to have to work together to get his sister back, as much as it pained him to do so.

"Alright, but if we do this then we do it my way." He said. Toph snorted.

"And what way is that? Run head long into a wall and hope something good happens?" Sokka raised a hand, ready to strike her. Toph merely turned her head, preparing herself for the blow. His hand hesitated, poised to strike, but there was something about her submission that made him pause. He was about to hit this girl across the face because she had made a rude comment at her, and she just stood there, turning her face and readying herself for the strike. Her black hair covered her crystal eyes, blood stained across her face. What was he doing?

Sokka lowered his hand, taking in a deep breath, trying to settle himself. "Alright, alright, sorry." He said, holding his hands up. Toph merely grunted.

"What's the plan?" She asked. Sokka scratched the back of his neck, looking down the tunnel. At least she wasn't trying to force him to go back to Zuko, not that he remembered how he had gotten down here in the first place.

Well." He said, looking further down the tunnel. "I guess we just keep going down this way." He looked back over at Toph, watching as she rolled her eyes.

"That's your plan? I'm in awe." She said, holding her hands up mockingly. Sokka could not stay his hand this time around, letting it crack across her face with a loud slap. She fell to the ground in a heap, her body quivering slightly as she slowly picked herself up. Sokka stared at her, ambivalence coursing through his body. He just didn't know what to feel at the moment.

Toph stood beside him, still. She did not retaliate, merely lowering her head and waiting for him to lead on. Sokka looked at her once more, turning and marching further down into the tunnel. Time to see where his instincts were taking him this time around.

* * *

><p>Katara leaned back up against the stone wall, bored to death. If she had to guess how long they had been sitting there she would have to say at least a couple of days, though she knew for certain that it was nothing more than a couple of hours or so. There was just something about the unending silence that made time drag more than it needed to. That, and the fact that Azula just sat there smirking at her didn't help. She just sat there with a stupid grin on her face, unmoving, like stone. A few time Katara had actually thought she had died, but as soon as she moved Azula would move her eyes, staring at her with that sinister look.<p>

A few times she had tried falling asleep, but somehow she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was staring daggers into her. Whenever she opened her eyes sure enough there sat Azula, still staring at her. She could swear that she literally feel Azula's look like a physical presence, tiny needles getting beneath her skin and stabbing at her nerves. It was infuriating!

Finally, after another failed attempt to sleep, she decided she had had enough. They were going to talk, even if it killed them!

Opening her eyes she looked at Azula, the same stupid smile on her face. She sat frowning. "Would you just knock it off?!" She called, crossing her arms. Azula stretched out, grimacing against the pain.

"I have no idea what it is that you're complaining about snow peasant. I'm the one who was tortured you know." Katara tried to not pull out her hair.

"You know I have a name?" She said. Azula shrugged her shoulders.

"Now why would that concern me? I don't have time to interact with the commoners." Katara suppressed a scream.

"You've got time now so focus up!" She yelled. Azula did not seem too impressed by her outburst. Katara watched as Azula forced a fake yawn, pretending to not care.

"Please." She said, gritting her teeth. Azula looked over at the wall, then back at Katara, clicking her broken nails against the stone.

"Well…" Katara took in a deep breath, her cheeks turning red as she watched Azula 'mull' things over in her head. Patience, patience was a virtue.

"If you do want to work with me you'll have to play things by my rules." Said Azula. Katara raised an eyebrow.

"And what's that? Stab those closest to you in the back for your own gain?" Azula frowned, her golden eyes sparking like fire. For a moment it seemed as if she was wondering off, a bewildered expression crossing her face, but she snapped back, shaking her head.

"No, snow peasant, it just means you that you do as I say." Said Azula, letting the comment by. "For instance, when Joshua comes back here in thirty seconds you tell him you need more time to think. When he grabs me don't call out. Go with him without resisting." Katara blinked.

"What?" Boots started to echo down the tunnel to their cell, making Azula grin. Katara turned and watched the door, her heart pounding inside her chest as the boots came closer and closer. What if Joshua had changed his mind? What if he was going to torture her now? She didn't know if she could do torture again. One time had been enough for her, but twice?

The boots stopped outside the door, the key scraping against the lock. Her heart leapt into her throat, a slight tremble developing in her hands. She looked over to Azula, the girl merely offering her a nod.

Katara tried to take assurance in that nod. She needed to do as Azula said. Oddly enough she did not feel warm and fuzzy inside at the thought.

The door swung open, the fire dying out with the draft. Joshua stood in the entrance, his two goons right behind him, holding more torches. The man stepped in, a broad smile on his face.

"Well, well, well. It's nice to see you awake." He said, looking down at Azula. The firebender returned the comment with a smirk.

Joshua grunted. "You know, I don't think I like that look." He said. A moment later he kicked Azula in the ribcage with the side of his foot. She collapsed into a pile on the ground, coughing and holding her side. Joshua smiled, turning to Katara.

"How are you doing my dear? I hope that she hasn't been to sour of company." Katara tried to force a smile, but it died on her lips. Joshua tisked.

"That bad hmm? Well, have you at least thought about my offer?" Katara looked at Azula, watching as the girl ever so slightly shook her head. Katara swallowed, taking in a deep breath.

"Yes, I've thought about it, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to take a little more time. It's just so uncertain." Joshua dipped his head.

"As you wish my dear. Perhaps there's something I can do to speed up the process." He said, snapping his fingers. Black hair came into the cell, handing his torch over to his brother, grabbing Azula roughly by the arm and jerking her up. She got to her feet, stumbling, her face grimaced in pain. Joshua extended his hand to Katara.

"This way my dear." Katara looked at his bony hand, pale white. It seemed to glow like a ghost's, his veins a dim black beneath the slim veneer of ivory flesh.

There was a possibility here that she was about to be tortured, and knowing that this guy had spent a couple years underneath Azula's hand did not assure her of a lack of skill. No doubt he knew every trick Azula did, and more. If there really was a tormented spirit inside of him there was no telling how many different ages it had lived through, enduring and observing pain. It was a most unsettling prospect.

Eventually though, with a summoning of courage, she took his hand. His fingers tightened around hers, hoisting her off of the ground with his wiry strength. He held her close to him for a moment, his body pressed against hers. He smiled, rows of yellow teeth immediately turning white, a black flash running through his tongue.

Katara jumped back, shocked. What in the world had just happened?

Joshua just chuckled at her, amused. "Don't worry my dear, just a bit of harmless play. Nothing to be worried about." Katara nodded her head, trying to reassure herself that he was not going to possess her with an evil spirit. Somehow the thought wasn't very convincing.

"Shall we continue?" He asked, waving off down the hall. Azula stood right outside, her hands cuffed behind her back, a firm hand placed on her neck. She was gritting her teeth against the pain she was in, her body ready to collapse from exhaustion.

Katara walked past Joshua, making her way out into the hall, standing beside the smaller airbender. Joshua came out, dusting his hands and slamming the cell shut, not bothering to lock it. He tucked the key back into his chest pocket, whistling as he began striding down the stone tunnel.

The others followed, Katara walking alongside San-Lee, while black hair pushed Azula along, making the firebender stumble and fall, the stones cutting into her exposed flesh. Katara tried to not turn back and help her, determined to keep from looking.

She knew that if she turned back she would just want to help Azula out, and she couldn't do that at the moment, she just had to keep an open mind for what was going on and find the best opportunity to get them out of there. She couldn't play things Azula's way because Azula was merely looking a way out for her. She was going to have to figure a way out for both of them. Perhaps she could appeal to Joshua's better nature?

Katara looked up to see Joshua pushing open another door, leading them into a side room. Torches sat along the walls, casting a sinister orange glow on the floor outside the room. She took a moment, her feet stalling as the stench hit her nose, the smell of seared flesh and rotting meat wafting up to her. It made her want to barf, the horrendous odor spreading out into the whole tunnel.

San-Lee came up to her, setting one of his torches to the side and gently grabbing her by the arm. "Come on." Said the boy. "Joshua wants you inside." Katara let herself be led forward by San-Lee, taking in one last deep breath before stepping across the thresh hold.

She gasped as she stepped inside, terror seizing hold of her heart. Iron instruments of torture lined every inch of the walls, some already caked in blood. Several different tables and racks with pulleys and ropes lined the room, along with two devices covered in spikes. She jumped as her hand brushed across a table, a whip soaked in blood rubbing up against her hand. Okay, perhaps Joshua didn't have a better nature.

The man stood stroking one of the benches, this one with five different clamps, two set down towards where the legs seemed to sit, spread apart, two others up for the arms holding them straight out, and one more for what looked like the neck. It did not seem like a fun device. Ropes and levers sat about on it, allowing the torturer to adjust the settings so as to stretch out the person more or less.

Joshua turned back to the others, looking over at black hair. "San-Jin, would you please show our guess to the ropes?" The one called San-Jin dragged Azula over to an open area, taking two ropes from the ceiling and tying them around her wrists. He then un-cuffed her, tightening the ropes and raising her hands high above her head. He also tied her feet with two different ropes, tightening them and spreading her legs somewhat, keeping her from fidgeting too much. Katara swallowed.

"So, I know that you're having trouble at the moment making a decision. But I thought perhaps if I showed you what it is that I do, then maybe you would consider helping me in this little bargain of ours." Joshua picked up a thin black whip, the lash as fine as the stem on a leaf. He turned and sliced it through the air, flicking his wrist and cracking it down. It tore through Azula's back, making a fine cut and tearing her flesh from her back. A suppressed scream escaped between her lips, making Joshua smile.

Katara stood back in horror as Joshua continued to deliver nine more such blows, each one drawing a louder and louder reaction from Azula. On number seven she finally screamed out loud, and on the tenth she let out a sob, her body flexing and loosing with each strike. At the end she merely hung limp in the ropes, her breathing difficult.

Joshua set the whip down, turning back to Katara. "You see, I'm merely repaying her for all her marvelous deeds. Reap what you sow, no?" Katara clasped her hands together by her waist, trying to keep the shake from being noticed. All she wanted at the moment was to be far away from here. Far away from this torture chamber, far away from this mountain, and far away from this psychopath. He was freaking her out! And the worst part was, she kinda liked watching Azula be tortured.

Being honest with herself, deep down, she knew she was enjoying this. The memory came to her of being back in the Earth-Kingdom prison when Azula had spent those days tormenting her, hanging her above a heated lead pipe, leaving her to swelter above its flames. A part of her remembered that, and was currently relishing watching Azula get hers. But that wasn't how she was supposed to be. She needed to be loving, merciful, forgiving. Repaying hatred with hatred would only breed more hatred. If she wanted things to get better then she was going to have to learn to care for Azula, and she might as well start here.

But how could she do that and play Joshua at the same time? He wouldn't fall for anything if he believed she felt pity for Azula. At the moment it seemed as if the best thing for Azula was to turn on her.

She took in a deep breath. Well then, game on.

"Is that really all you do to her?" She said, surprised with how arrogant and cocky her voice sounded. She caught everyone off guard, Azula shifting in the ropes to turn her head around. Joshua raised an eyebrow.

"Pardon?" He asked. Katara threw her head back and laughed caustically, secretly hoping that it was believable.

"You're kidding, right? After all that big talk of tormenting her for all the evils she had done and the best you can do is a whip?" Joshua blinked, looking down at the whip. He fingered it.

"Well, no, it's not everything." He said. Katara snorted, keeping the act up. She walked over and picked up the whip, turning it over in her hands, inwardly disgusted at the cruel device.

"Yes, it's not everything, but it seems to me like it's the only thing you use." She said, tossing it down with a bored look. She waltzed over to Azula, peeling her tattered shirt back to look at the wounds. They ran deep, blood slowly seeping out of them. They were going to scar.

"Don't you know how to torture a bender?" She called, turning back around to Joshua. The man frowned.

"Don't you see these thing in here?" He said, gesturing to the room full of torture utensils. Katara shrugged.

"I see them, but do you know how to use them?" She could hear Azula's breathing quicken as she spoke.

"What are you doing peasant?" Hissed Azula, beneath her breath. Katara grabbed a handful of salt from a bag on a table, turning and pressing her hand into Azula's back. Azula's muscles tightened as she rubbed the salt into her wounds, forcing a muffled scream to come out from behind her teeth.

Katara drew her hand away, flicking her fingers towards the ground and shaking off some of the blood. She quickly tucked her hands into her pockets, hiding their trembling. She was so dead.

"Well, I see you're quite the enthusiast." Katara turned to see Joshua, a slight smile on his face. Katara frowned.

"I never liked the way she addressed me." She said, walking back towards Joshua. "So, are you going to show me you know how to use these or are you just going to talk all day?" Joshua smiled, a wicked and nasty grin.

"Why of course, right this way." He said, waving on towards the wall. Katara walked up, cringing at the assortment of spikes and screws that sat spread out before her.

"What would you like me to demonstrate?" He asked. Katara swallowed, realizing that her demonstration had come a bit too far. She had wanted to convince him that she did not care for Azula, but helping him torture her, could she do that?

She breathed in deep. It did not matter whether or not she could do it, she was doing it. The best she could do was select the least painful looking contraption for Joshua to use and hope that Azula did not murder her when they were thrown back in their cell.

Clasping her hands behind her back, Katara began to stroll up and down the wall, immediately dismissing anything that seemed too large or sharp as they looked exceptionally painful. She also eliminated anything that was rusted or crusted with blood, as they could cause serious infection. Perusing through all of the items, she finally came to one she thought would not be too painful. It was a simple little thing of metal, with a half crescent and some weird emblem on the end. There were no points or razors on it, so unless he planned on shoving it down Azula's throat she was fairly certain it would not hurt…too much.

Katara picked the device up off of the wall, turning it over in her hands and tossing it over to Joshua without looking. It went wide and would have missed altogether had one of the airbenders not blown it back over to him. Moment of coolness ended.

Joshua looked at the device for a moment, a smile spreading across his face. "Ohh, my dear, you do know your instruments." Katara felt her throat choke at his words, fear seizing hold of her body. He could actually use that to hurt Azula?

Joshua held the item by the end, flicking his wrist and unfolding the other half. It formed a complete circle at the end, a ring of metal surrounding an emblem. The Fire-Nation emblem to be specific. Joshua snapped his fingers, a black flame springing to life.

"Shall we?" He asked, motioning over to Azula. Katara hesitated a moment, then walked alongside him, coming over to Azula. Joshua held his flame right below the emblem, the heat beginning to radiate in waves. The metal soon began to turn color, changing from red to white hot, making Katara sweat. She began to tremble as she realized what it was that she had chosen. A brand.

Joshua held the brand up close to Azula's face, the girls' golden eyes growing wide. She shot a look over to Katara, a pleading look, begging her to stop this maniac. Katara swallowed.

"Where are you going to put it?" She asked, her voice a bit shaky. Joshua stopped, turning back to her.

"What?" Katara frowned.

"You have to put it somewhere, so where is it going?" Joshua pulled back, placing the brand back beneath his flame. A thoughtful look came across his face as he pondered upon this inquiry. Katara could only hope that he decided to not do it.

"Well." Said Joshua, looking Azula up and down. "I think the best place would be right here." He said, lifting the brand up and moving it towards Azula's cheek. The firebender turned her face, her eyes shut tight, waiting for the fiery pain.

Katara, on instinct, grabbed the brand and lowered it before she could stop herself. She pressed it into Azula's bare shoulder, the skin bubbling and melting as the brand seared into flesh. A scream escaped Azula's lips as she fought against the pain, her body shaking. Joshua pulled the brand back a moment later.

"What was that?!" He demanded. Katara grabbed the brand tossing it away with a condescending glower. The smell of burnt flesh came up to her nostrils, making her gag. She wanted to spew at the reek, but she knew that she needed to stay strong and keep up the charade if she ever wanted to get them out of there.

"It's called poetic justice. She branded your shoulder you brand hers." Joshua looked down at the brand on his flesh, then over at Azula's, the skin still steaming, blood slowly dripping.

"Well, I guess that is kind of funny." He said, a smile spreading across his face. "You know what my dear, I think I really like you." Katara gave a bored yawn, hoping that her body was not trembling too much.

"Your admiration is misplaced. All I want is to get out of here, if it means tormenting her then so be it, but I still want out." Joshua laughed, offering a bow.

"As soon as our discussion is finished my dear, you shall be on your way." The man started walking over to the door, turning back and holding out his hand.

"Right this way." Katara stole one last glance at Azula's limp form, her chest struggling as it rose and fell with every breath. That girl was going to kill her later on.

Turning back to Joshua she walked over to him, placing her hand in his icy grasp. He smiled, leading her out and away from the chamber. He gave a nod to San-Jin as he went by, the door thudding shut behind them as they left.

Walking through the tunnels, they came to another room, this one furbished as a living quarters. Joshua walked over and sat down in a simple chair, motioning to the bed next to him.

"Please, have a seat." Katara walked over to the bed, the covers tangled and matted. Sweat stains plagued the sheets, some of them still wet. She took a step back, putting her hands behind her back.

"I think I'm good." She said. Joshua laughed, standing up as well. A strange look crossed his face, his pale form becoming more sinister.

"Very well, we can conduct business on our feet." He said, walking over and grabbing a sliver flask from a wooden table. He poured out two glasses of black liquid, the substance shimmering like oil, shifting in the torchlight. He brought the crystal glasses over to her, offering her one. She did not take it.

"I think I'm good." She said. Joshua raised an eyebrow.

"You sure? It's honestly quite good." Katara sniffed, the potent smell of alcohol making her dizzy. She shook her head.

"No, thank you." Joshua shrugged his shoulders.

"Have it your way." He then threw his head back, downing first his glass then the second glass, slamming them back down on the table. Katara watched as his hands began to shake, sweat accumulating on his neck. He turned to her, his eyes red, a tear trailing down his cheek. He smiled.

"Good stuff, hits you right here." He said, tapping his chest. Katara kept her mouth shut, watching as the man walked back over to her, leaning in close. His breath smelled of the alcohol, his body wobbling slightly. Had he already gotten drunk after only two glasses? What was he drinking?

"Well, now, deary. I think it's about time we discussed our little…arrangement." He said. Katara stepped back, uncomfortable with his gaze. His eyes darted up and down her body like a hawk's, a predator looking over its prey. She could feel it rest on her chest, then on her legs, scanning her up and down with a lustful glare. This was not going to end well.

She cleared her throat, hoping that he would not come closer. "What did you have in mind?" Joshua took a step towards her, leaning so that his face was close to hers. He closed his eyes and breathed deep, a sickly look across his face.

"Well, I want to be left alone with Azula, and your friends want me to leave them alone." He said, reaching a hand up and brushing her hair. Katara could feel her skin crawl at his touch. She smacked his hand away, stepping around him, her back to the bed.

"Well, I don't really know what guarantee that I can give you that Zuko would actually give up his chase." She said, slowly moving back as he walked towards her. He licked his lips.

"Well, perhaps, you could be my guarantee." He said, his knuckles cracking. Katara bumped up against the bed, her heart pounding inside of her chest. Lord save her.

"I don't quite know." She started, Joshua stopped her.

"It'd be simple. By staying here with me the others wouldn't dare come after me because of what I might…do." He said, brushing a white knuckle against her cheek. Katara began to shake, her body trembling at his presence.

"And with you by my side you can make sure that I don't do anything against them. You can also see to Azula's welfare and make sure that she's still alive. That way Zuko won't feel too pressured to come after us." Katara tried to escape, but he was leaning towards her, pinching her legs against the frame of the bed.

"Aang wouldn't be happy about that." She said, praying with all her might that the lunatic would pull back.

"Dead men have no worries." Said Joshua simply, pushing Katara down on the bed. She fell with a cry, struggling as Joshua came down on top of her, grabbing at her wrists. She screamed and kicked and flung herself about, bringing her head crashing into his temple. It only made him laugh.

"Man, you are a feisty one my dear." Katara continued to resist him, trying to think of something to save her from her fate. Joshua had just turned her around to her back when a knock came at the door, distracting him. Katara took the opportunity to launch a mule kick right into the man's nether regions.

Joshua fell crumpled on the ground with a suppressed cry, holding his delicates. Katara stood and turned, making her way for the door. She grabbed it, yanking it open and rushing straight into the arms of one of the airbenders. Frantically she fought against the boy's grasp, but it was no use, he held on to her.

"Whoa, easy there, it's okay, it's okay." Katara stopped struggling looking up to see the young airbenders face. A smile spread across his lips; the young San-Lee.

"Don't worry miss, nothing's going to happen." San-Lee proceeded to reach out and close the door behind her, leaving the frothing Joshua to begin raging in his room.

The boy then took her gently by the arm, leading her off back down the hall towards her cell. She followed along docile, stunned by the recent turn of events. Her body trembled as tears leapt to her eyes, the horrors that she had just escaped rushing through her mind. The young airbender simply patted her on the back, comforting her.

"I hope you don't mind him too much miss, he really can't control it at times." Said the boy. Katara turned to him, wiping her teary eyes with the back of her hands.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Well." Started San-Lee. "You see, there's this demon thingy inside of him, and from time to time it gains control of him and makes him do things he doesn't normally do. Did he drink from his silver flask?" Katara nodded her head.

"Did you drink from it?" Asked San-Lee, urgency seeping into his voice. Katara shook her head, adamant. San-Lee sighed, nodding his head.

"Good, you don't what that stuff in your system. I don't know what it is, but it will put you on such a trip. Whenever he starts drinking from that it means that the demon's back in control. Don't ask me why but that's what we've found out, Sangee and I." Katara continued to walk with the boy, comforted by his light tone and chipper talk.

"Why do you and your brother serve him?" She asked. San-Lee stopped, looking around in the hall. He leaned over to her, beckoning her closer. She leaned down, pressing her face close to his.

"Well." Started the boy, an excited glee to is words, as if whispered in secret to a close friend. "To tell you the truth I don't like serving him, but Sangee fancies him a bit, so I do as he likes. Besides, Joshua promised to bring justice to the Fire-Nation, and to be honest I don't like them too much." Katara nodded her head. It was understandable, she herself was just now beginning to tolerate them.

"But what is his plan?" She whispered. San-Lee opened his mouth, then shut it again, a smile spreading across his lips. He wagged his finger at her as if she was a naughty pet.

"I see what you're doing, clever. Sangee did tell me that you could never trust women, now I see what he was saying." Katara grunted.

"I had to try." San-Lee laughed.

"That you did." He said, leading her on. Katara walked alongside him, her heart steadying as they made their way further and further from Joshua. She turned once more to the boy.

"Why did you come for me?" She asked. San-Lee stopped, a confused look on his face.

"What?" He asked.

"Why did you come for me?" Repeated Katara. San-Lee raised an eyebrow, obviously confused.

"I didn't come back for you." He said.

"Then why did you go back?" San-Lee sat for a moment, his face reflecting thought. Suddenly his countenance lit up, his mouth flying open.

"Ohh geesh! I nearly forgot!" The boy turned, sprinting back down the hall, leaving her standing there.

"Don't go anywhere!" He called, his voice echoing down the tunnel. Katara smirked, looking around at the empty tunnel around her. Sure, she wouldn't go anywhere, and Sokka didn't sleep with women.


	5. Power Struggle

**Chapter XV**

"Well, we're lost." Sokka groaned, slapping himself on the forehead. They had been wondering around for at least half an hour now, and still he couldn't find where it was that he wanted to go. The nagging feeling that was inside of him seemed to have just fallen asleep or something, leaving him completely lost. But then again, it did leave him calm and in control, which was a first. It was like having somebody pull the levers in your head, and after the longest time of having no free will the little operator just decided to take a nap. So now he moved about with the fear of waking the operator back up, not wanting to return to the angered state that he had previously lived his life in.

"Why did I follow you again?" Sokka stopped, shaking his head. He turned back around to his whining companion, raising an eyebrow.

"You done?" He asked. Toph put her hands on her hips, her face battered and bruised. Dried blood sat smeared across her cheeks, some crusted blood sitting around her nostrils. There was also a giant welt on her left cheek from where he had smacked her. And yet, even with all of that, she still managed to appear apathetic to his threats, shaking off his words as if they were broken arrows. Of course, with the current slumber of the operator, as Sokka had decided to call him, his threats were kind of empty. He was once again afraid to strike the earthbender, not to mention the fact that he didn't want to harm her.

"What do you think meathead?" She asked. Sokka grunted.

"If I apologized would it make you lighten up?" Toph actually seemed shocked, blinking.

"Uhh, Sokka, if you were to apologize I might consider not KILLING YOU! When I get my Earthbending back!" Yelled the little girl, startling him and making him fall back on his hands. Sharp pain flew through him as his palms made contact with the warm stone, blood once again trickling out of his wounds. He grunted, standing back up and wiping his bleeding hands on his pant legs.

"Toph, I'm sorry! But I can't take back what I did, or said. All I can do is try to make things right." Toph snorted, walking up to him and jabbing him in the chest.

"Listen here, buddy. After we get Sugar-Queen back I'm having nothing to do with you, got it?" Sokka opened his mouth to argue, but Toph nailed him in the gut, making him double over.

"Got it?" She growled, leaning down next to his ear. He shook his head, his side flaring up with pain.

"Got it." He coughed, turning around and gasping for breath. Toph dusted off her hands, smiling.

"Good, now let's go get Sugar-Queen." She said The earthbender walked past him, leaving him to wheeze for breath. He eventually straightened out, calming himself with deep breaths. He watched as Toph accidently turned into the wall, bumping her face on the rock. She stumbled back, shocked, feeling the wall. Sokka chuckled, the laugh dying in his throat as Toph turned to him, a curdling glower on her face.

"What are you laughing about?" She demanded. Sokka shrugged his shoulders, walking by her.

"Nothing, but might I suggest we go this way?" He said, walking down one of the side tunnels. Toph merely muttered something about the dim light and followed him, her arms crossed.

The two continued on down the tunnel for a while longer, walking slowly and silently. All around them sat vibrating crystals, bathing them in an eerie luminescence. Blues and greens fell upon them, lighting at their feet a dim path, pulsating softly. Sokka could feel the light touch against his skin, a slight tingling sensation as if there were a bunch of particles in the light bouncing off of him.

Eventually they came across a yellow light, the golden crystal flickering on the cavern wall. It sparked for a few moments as they approached, a moment later a golden image of Toph flickering into view, full sized.

They both jumped back, shocked by the image. The image jumped back as well, mirroring what Toph did. Slowly they approached it, Toph moving up and waving her hand. It waved back at her.

"It's just a reflection." Said Sokka. Toph glared at him.

"I know what it is meathead." She snapped, turning back to the image and performing a series of hand motions. The image reflected all she did, making a smile spread across her face.

"This is pretty neat." She said, making another gesture. The image complied, following the gesture. Sokka shook his head.

"Come on Toph, we don't have time to mess around with magic crystals." He said, moving to go through it. The image vanished, the crystal flickering once more. A moment later there was a crack and flash, the crystal turning crimson as a red image appeared before them.

Sokka jumped back, startled at the horrid appearance of the image. Even Toph gave a little gasp, taking half a step back as the image stood before them, staring at them with black eyes.

Sokka raised a hand, the image responding with a mottled hand, bone protruding out from beneath the skin at various angles.

"I don't actually look like that, do I?" Asked Sokka, titling his head. He watched as the image titled its cut face, black oozing out of the marks. Sokka gave it a half-hearted smile, the image returning it with a mouth of snakes and vipers, staring blankly ahead at him. Toph shuddered next to him.

"You know what, I liked it better when I was blind." Sokka nodded his head, his gaze fixed on the spiders that were crawling around the image's body. He could feel their little feet patter across his chest, making him shake.

"I'm kinda wishing I was blind at the moment." He said. Toph shook her head, looking back up at the image.

"Come on, we don't have time for this!" She said, grabbing Sokka by the arm and marching him through the image. The projection flickered as they went through it. Sokka cast one last glance back, watching as the image turned to him, a sinister smile on its lips. It raised its hand, waving goodbye to him as he stumbled ahead of Toph.

"Wha…?" Toph pushed him, making him stumble past the crystal and around a corner. He blinked as a blinding light struck him, the tunnel ahead of them shining white. The two stopped.

"What in the world?" Muttered Toph. Sokka raised a hand, blocking the light.

"It's daylight." He said, walking forward. Toph kept to his side, still blinking as they came to the end of the tunnel.

Toph grabbed Sokka's arm. "Wait!" She hissed. Sokka turned to her, his heart leaping into his throat.

"What, what is it?" He asked, his hand flying to a water skin he did not have.

"There's people waiting in the room for us." She said. Sokka paused, turning back to Toph.

"How do you know that?" He asked. Toph opened her mouth, then stopped, a confused look crossing her face.

"I don't know." She said, peering ahead to the end of the tunnel. Sokka watched as she closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. A moment later they flew open, their emerald hue stained by a splash of milky green.

"I'm pretty sure there's two people waiting for us in that room." She said. Sokka held out a hand in front of her.

"How many fingers?" He asked. Toph frowned, crossing her arms.

"Sokka…" She stared, but he shook his head.

"No, how many fingers." Toph rolled her eyes, looking at his hand. She blinked for a moment, squinting.

"Thre…no, four." She said. Sokka put down his four fingers.

"You're losing your sight, aren't you?" He said. Toph snorted.

"No, it's just this dang tunnel. How can you expect me to see anything when it's so dang dim?"

"But the people in the room, you sensed them with your Earthbending, didn't you?" Toph opened her mouth, then closed it, a thoughtful expression crossing her face. She took a moment and closed her eyes, no doubt focusing on her senses. She opened them again a moment later.

"I may be getting my bending back." She said, punching the wall. The stone bowed inwards, leaving an indent of her little fist. She gave a satisfied grunt.

"Ya, it's coming back." She said, shaking her hand out. "Slowly." Sokka, scratched his chin.

"So, you're going blind again, but getting your bending back. Which means at the moment you're the most useless." Toph frowned, crossing her arms.

"Pardon?" She asked. Sokka looked down the tunnel, hoping that this place didn't have good acoustics.

"When you were blind you had all of your bending, which is extremely beneficial. Without your bending you could see which still made you a threat. But now, halfway between both, you can barely bend and barely see, which means you are almost completely useless." Toph curled her lip at him, her frown deepening.

"Well, it isn't my fault that I lost my bending. Not like I wanted to see your ugly mug." Sokka felt a stab of pain shoot through him at the remark, his feelings hurt. Sure he was a total ass now, but he stilled cared for the little girl. There had been a time when they were best friends. But then again, that was a time. Perhaps it was best just to move on now. He'd continue being a perverted, angry, freak, and she could keep being the sassy, young, gorgeous, growing woman who had always matched his personality so perfectly.

Sokka blink, realizing that his heart rate was racing at the moment. It felt like the beating of a bird's wings thumping against his chest. He looked down at Toph's blurring eyes, watching her angry stare. It seemed that she wasn't picking up on his current condition. Good, he didn't want her to know that he still had feelings for her, however twisted they were.

"Your brain go dead numbnuts?" Sokka shook his head, snapping out of his thoughts and looking back at his friend, or companion, which ever fit better. More than likely companion, he was beginning to lose those afore mentioned feelings as a wave of heat crept up his spine.

"No, I was just thinking of what we should do." He snapped, trying to keep his voice to a harsh whisper. He looked back over his shoulder to the blinding sunlight, feeling as if his every word was being heard, which was not an impossibility.

Toph continued to stare at him, her eyes becoming dimmer and dimmer with each passing minute. "Well then, what's the plan?" Sokka opened his mouth, then shut it, his finger raised. What was his plan? He always had a plan, so what was it now?

"We could…uhh…rush in and catch them by surprise?" He said, his mind completely faltering. Toph raised an eyebrow, a condescending grin on her lips.

"Really, that's your plan? Come on meathead, you've come up with stuff a thousand times better, while on cactus juice." Sokka frowned, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Ya, that plan sucks." Toph and Sokka both jumped, turning around with fists raised. The noise had come down from the end of the tunnel. The sound of something smacking against flesh was followed by a groan and whimper of pain.

"What? They already knew we were here?" Said the voice.

"But they didn't know we could hear them idiot!" Grumbled a second voice.

"I never told them that we could hear them, that was you."

"Would you just shut up already?" Sokka turned to Toph, eyebrow raised.

"It's the airbending brothers." He whispered, trying to keep the noise down. There was a snort down the tunnel.

"We can still hear you moron!"

"Shut up!" There was another sound of smacking flesh, followed by a light tussle. Toph leaned past Sokka, staring down the tunnel. He turned his gaze down that way as well, expecting to see two forms rolling past the entrance, but the noise soon ceased.

"These guys might be as dumb as you are." Said Toph. Sokka ground his teeth, the absence of the puppet master soon dissipating as a wave began to creep up along his vision. Without even thinking his feet took him down towards the mouth of the tunnel, his hands trembling as shards of ice gathered around them. A small hand reached out and grabbed his arm, making him spin.

"What are you doing?" Hissed Toph. Sokka swung his arm, just barely missing the earthbender as she dropped down to the ground. Sokka turned and fled down the tunnel into the opening, dashing into the glowing sunlight.

Immediately a blast of air came at him, just as he expected. Rolling forward, he shot small shards of ice low in the direction of the air, a cry coming out as they ran into someone's shin. Coming back to his feet, he sensed a body of water to his right. Reaching out a hand he gathered it to his fingertips, making long, waving, whips.

He tried to look over at the two brothers, but for some reason his vision was darkening. Blackness thick as tar began to fall over his eyes, blinding him. He could feel the attacks coming, sensing the movements and motions of his enemies, but he could not see them.

Rolling, diving, and swiping, he fought off the areas he sensed. With each strike his power grew, but so did his blindness. Soon he was shattering cavern walls, shaking the entire mountain to its core, but he could see nothing, though it didn't hinder him.

He had developed a sixth sense of sorts, not seeing anything, but just knowing where the airbenders were at and what they were doing.

One of them was coming up on his left on an air scooter, the other, bigger one limping along on his right, throwing balls of air at him. Rolling underneath them he brought a wave of water out from the mountain itself, cutting through the cavern with an earth rumbling crack. Both of the airbenders fell over, regaining their feet a moment later.

They attacked him, their bending growing fiercer and fiercer as they came at him. The grate of steel alerted him to a draw weapon; his space sword. Turning, he whipped a lash of water out and caught the hand that was holding his weapon. With a tug he yanked it free, the blade soaring through the air, turning end over end. Without looking he caught the blade, the darkness immediately lifting and giving him back his sight.

With a gasp he staggered, a great weight lifting off of his chest and into his sword. He wobbled and fell to the ground, his hand dragging low as the sword grew heavier and heavier.

He could feel himself shaking, his whole body trembling as his power rushed out of him. It was as if his body was just empting his strength, letting it rush out like blood from an open wound. Cold stone cut into his shoulder as he landed on his side, pain coming back into his body and making his world spin.

Two figures approached him, looking down at him with an inquisitive gaze. They seemed to be talking to each other, but by then their voices were blurring, forming into a single string of gurgled sound. One of them bent over and grasped at the sword, tugging it out of his grasp. As the blade left his grip a black spark leaped from the hilt and into his palm. Fiery rage rushed through his veins, setting his heart alight with hatred.

He leapt to his feet with new found strength and knocked the smaller airbender back with a wave of water. He turned to take on the older brother, intent on destroying him.

However, when he turned, his mouth open, he felt a rush of air flow into his lungs, making him freeze. The tender flesh inside of his lungs pressed against his ribs, making them creak as they slowly expanded. He fell to his knees as they expanded further, his hands shaking as he stared up at the other airbender, his hand reached out and spiraling in little circles, forcing more and more air down his throat.

"Easy Sangee, we can't kill him. You know what Joshua said." The one called Sangee continued to turn his hand, making a rib snap in Sokka's chest. With a grunt he swayed, but a rush of red held him steady.

"He never said what type of shape we had to keep him in." Said the older bender, snapping another rib. Tears began to trickle down Sokka's face as the pain became more intense. Even with the spirit back inside of him there was not much he could do. The bender kept his mouth open and his body steady. If he moved so much as an inch he was certain that his lungs would burst straight through his chest, and he preferred to keep his organs inside of him.

"That's enough Sangee! I don't want to clean it up." Sangee chuckled, looking into Sokka's eyes.

"Just go see if Joshua's awake by now." Said the older brother. The smaller bender ran off down the hall, leaving Sokka to stare at the airbender holding his life in his hands.

Sokka looked down at his hand, noticing the blue tint beginning to play around at his fingertips. He was full of air none of which he was using. He could feel the burn mix in with the ache of broken bones. If he didn't get a breath soon he was going to pass out, then there would be absolutely no chance of escape.

Struggling, he tried to move his hand, but the airbender saw his move. With a flick of his finger the man broke two more ribs, making Sokka shake violently.

His vision was beginning to blur as his mind shut down, the lack of oxygen killing him. Right when he thought that he was going to pass out the airbender let go, letting him fall to the ground and hack, breathing in deep, easing breaths. Pain flared with every gasp, his whole body trembling as he coughed, his throat sore.

He looked up, expecting to see the bender threatening him with a ball of air, but the man fell over in a heap next to him, his eyes rolling back into his head.

"Thanks for the distraction Snoozles." Sokka smiled, looking up at the small frame of Toph. She held a broken piece of wood in her hands, tossing it to the side with a clatter.

"Come on, let's find your sister." She said, walking past him without so much as a hand to help him up. Sokka struggled to his feet, shaking his head as he followed the grumpy earthbender.

"Thanks." He choked, his voice hoarse. Toph waved him off.

"Don't thank me. I needed to get past him. Besides." She said, stopping and turning her head back towards him. "I was waiting to see where it was heading." Sokka looked at her clouding eyes, trying to determine whether or not she was telling the truth. Her coy smile said she was messing with him, but her stern eyes said she was telling the truth. He shook his head. What did it matter? He wasn't going to see her again after this anyways.

The duo made their way towards the back of the cavern, heading towards a set of tunnels. Letting Toph lead on, Sokka scanned the area quickly for his space sword, which was not to be seen. Continuing on with a slight grumble, he trailed behind the earthbender with a cautious air. There was something, a creeping menace that sought to overcome his being, teaming in the edges of the darkness enveloping them. Once more daylight faded as the eerie glow of crystals guided them on, illuminating their unsure path.

After a while of creeping Sokka looked behind them, his hands beginning to shake. He turned back around and tried to keep on Toph but she was slowly slipping away. Suddenly, he realized that his feet were halting, fighting against his will. A skirmish developed in his mind with faded colors; two battered entities hacking away at one another. After a short time the fight was over, and his feet began retracing their steps, moving back on to the mouth of the tunnel; back towards daylight.

With a subdued will he relinquished himself to his fate. He could no longer fight it, nor fight any other desire. The little operator had reawakened and this time he was not rendering any control to him, pain or not. The only thing he could do was sit back and feel the oncoming onslaught that was to overtake him. The redness of rage, the blackness of hate, the purple of lust, the dull grey of apathy. One after another they descended upon him and overtook him, forcing their way through his head and festering beneath his thoughts.

Upon reaching the edge of the tunnel he found that Toph was not behind him. She had not noticed his absence. Or, more likely, she had noticed and figured good riddance. She had already gambled with his life, staying back and silently goading the airbender to strike a merciless blow. She was, at the moment, likely marching on in her search of Katara, whom, when she found, she would tell that her brother had been slain in the most tragic of ways, dying at the menacing blackness that was the palm of annihilation.

Sokka froze. The palm of annihilation? Now what type silliness was that? It sounded like some old wife's tale; a fabricated creature meant to scare naughty children into subservience. He shook his head, chiding himself for a rampant imagination.

"It's nice to see that you've found your way home once more." Said a voice. Sokka jumped, the sound of the voice bouncing around in his head. A ball of darkness crashing through his shattered mind. He looked up, noticing the dimness of the cave. Daylight still shone through the opening, bright and clear, but its radiance fell short of true color. It was merely a shade, a dismal copy of what it should have been. In grey tones it descended upon the room, illuminating nothing, obscuring all. The only thing that could be made out clearly was the crimson glow of a body lying on the ground, its breaths rising and falling as if in sleep.

Sokka made his way over towards the body, stepping hesitantly in the murky grey that covered everything. The body was that of the airbender that Toph had knocked out a couple minutes ago. What did the boy call him again? Sangee?

Lowering a hand he reached out and touched the crimson image, his hand passing through and reaching a distant lump. It was solid, but cold, far from his own body. The man was still unconscious.

Standing straight, Sokka turned about the room, trying to find the source of the noise, but he found nothing, only the sea of grey. With a step forward, he began to panic, the feeling rising inside of him like a current threatening to sweep him away. This was not the world he knew! This was not the world he lived in, he had to find a way back!

"But my friend, there is no way back." Sokka froze at the sound of the voice. Taking his time, he turned towards it, the cheap light of the sun going black against the figure. It stood there, absolute in its abyss, none escaping its presence. With a flicker eyes appeared, red and vile, a flash of white developing for a mouth.

"Hello Sokka, it's so nice to see you once more." Sokka swallowed, his body feeling woozy. Something was gnawing at his being, devouring his essence. He needed to get away, but there was nowhere to run. He was in the creature's world now, and he had to play by its rules.

"Hey Spooky, long time no see."

* * *

><p>Moving about the tunnels as deftly as she could, she made her way back towards the cell. Hopefully Azula was there, then she'd be able to grab her and go. As the door came within the crystals light Katara realized that she did not have the key and would not be able to open up the cell door. It was back with Joshua, in his pocket. She hung her head, groaning. Why did these type of things always have to happen? Seriously, she didn't need the extra tension at the moment. Well, since she was here she might as well check in on Azula.<p>

Moving up to the rusted bars of the cell, she pressed her face against them, trying to peer in. She withdrew a second later as the acrid smell of seared flesh wafted up to her nostrils, making her gag.

"Ohh, quiet being a baby and get over here." Said a wearied voice. There was the sound of shifting movement, then Azula's battered face appeared behind the bars, purple and blue. There was still a mischievous gleam in her golden eyes, staring at her with that infuriating look of pretentiousness.

"You know." Started Azula, her voice parched and dry. "I didn't think you had it in you, but you played that wonderfully. I dare say, snow peasant, you might have made a good firebender." Katara stood stunned for a moment, shocked that Azula was not furious. She had gotten her branded! How in the world could she just brush such a thing off?

"You aren't mad?" She asked, taking a tentative step forward. Azula chuckled softly, the annoying sound of an adult chiding a child.

"Please, pain is only a temporary thing. It will pass with time. Death, however, doesn't. As long as you keep me alive and get me out then I have no problem."

"Now." Continued Azula. "Do you have the key?" Katara felt a knot develop in her throat, afraid to tell her. Apparently her face said it all, as Azula let out an irritated snort.

"Of course not. You can pull of torturing me but you couldn't get the key from him." Katara crossed her arms, frowning.

"He tried to rape me." She said, defending herself. Azula waved her off.

"What's that to freedom? You could have just gone along with it until the opportunity arose and then snatched the key from him. Or, after he passed out, you could have killed him then grabbed the key. Seriously snow peasant, you need to think these things more thoroughly. Stop being so selfish." Katara felt her face turn an incredulous red, embarrassment and anger welling up as she felt the slight strike her. She knew she shouldn't be so upset, she really didn't have a choice. It was just, when she thought about it, Azula was probably right. If she had stayed longer or let him have his way she might have been able to get the key. Now she was going to have to sneak back and try to steal the key from an awake Joshua.

"I guess I'll go steal it then." She said, turning to go. As she crept back up the tunnel a crash echoed from behind, shaking the tunnel. Turning around she met a wave of smoke as it slapped her in the face, clearing a moment later to reveal the cell door flat on the ground. Azula stood over it, dusting her hands off. The girl smiled at her, limping towards her.

"I had the spare." Katara watched as Azula made her way over towards the end of the tunnel, smoke drifting from her fingertips, limping slowly all the way. Katara came up behind Azula, her heart jumping as she waited for the sound of footfalls that was sure to follow. After a few moments of silence she thought she heard something. She grabbed Azula's shoulder, making the girl wince.

"Did you hear that?" She whispered. Azula turned, smacking off the offending hand.

"You're crazy peasant, there isn't anything." Said Azula. The girl turned, but then paused, listening for half a moment. There was another thump from up ahead.

"You've got to tell me you heard that one." Whispered Katara. She moved in close behind Azula, intending to use the girl as a shield of sorts for when they came; at least she could bend.

Azula stared ahead for a moment, then shook her head.

"They're not coming for us peasant." Katara peered ahead into the dimly lit tunnel, unsure.

"Are you sure? You made quite a bit of noise busting yourself out of that cell." Azula started to limp forward.

"They're going to be too busy with whoever it was that came in the front door to worry about us now." Katara followed behind, perplexed.

"What do you mean?" Azula snorted, wincing a moment later.

"Why do you think they put us back in that cell so quickly? Someone found the tunnel." A ray of hope passed through Katara as her thoughts turned to her friends. They had found her! She kept close to Azula, looking ahead.

"Do you think it's the others?" She asked. Azula shrugged her shoulders.

"Zuzu isn't the brightest fellow but he's entitled to get lucky every now and again." Katara frowned.

"You mean like the time he beat you?" Azula froze, standing up straight and turning around to Katara. Azula stared her down with a battered face, a scourged painting dripping with red and black. The odor of seared flesh still hung in the air, blood slowly trickling down her shoulder and through the tattered remains of her outfit. She was beaten, torn, and broken, only the remnants of what looked like a person. But still, she was intimidating, someone not to be trifled with nor tested, and in the moment Katara felt like she might have crossed a line.

"What happened there, with precious Zuzu." Growled Azula. "Was that I let him win. There are greater ploys than to merely hold onto power the entire while. Sometimes one must step back to truly seize it." Katara took a step back, frightened by the wild look in Azula's eyes. They sparked with animosity, a hidden insanity that came out only beneath times of great strain or stress. Katara, wising up, decided to not pursue the topic any further, instead merely offering a nod. Azula narrowed her eyes for a moment, then turned, moving back down the hall.

Katara followed behind as quietly as possible, taking care to watch their backs as they moved on. The tunnel kept stretching on ever before them, dim and eerie. The noise had died down after another minute or so, leaving them in a haunting silence. It plagued them along with the faltering steps of Azula and what Katara thought were her all too loud breaths. She was certain that someone was going to hear her panting like an ostrich-horse and come find them, but no one ever came. It was just them and the tunnel.

"What's going on?" She whispered. Azula hushed her, freezing. Blue flames leapt to life in the firebenders hands, taking a precarious stance on injured legs, using Katara to balance. Katara also took a pose. Of course her pose didn't hold any real threat, except maybe she could fool someone into thinking she was shooting columns of water at them if she made convincing enough sound effects.

The slight patter of feet came to them from further up in the tunnel, coming around the corner and directly ahead of them. Azula shot out two columns of flames, obviously intent on annihilating whoever it was before they had the chance to strike. Katara merely moved her hands, making a slurping noise with her mouth.

The figure dropped to the ground right as Azula was moving, rolling beneath the fiery columns. It came up, hands spread out before them.

"Who, hold it guys. It's me, Toph." Azula froze, a ball of flame sitting in her grasp. Katara peered ahead in the gloom, noticing the earthbenders diminutive frame.

"Toph?" She said, taking a step forward. Azula, who had been using her shoulder to balance, fell with a cry, luckily landing on her well preserved butt.

"Geesh, you two are pretty jumpy." Said Toph. Katara hugged her friend, squeezing her tight.

"We have reason to be." She said, stepping back and looking at her friend. Toph's face was badly bruised, dried blood running out beneath her nose and lips. One of her eyes looked pretty swollen, and she held herself with a delicate gait, like one that has gone through recent trials.

"Ahem." Speaking of recent trials. Katara turned around, her face glowing red in the tunnel. She went back over to Azula, bending down to let the firebender wrap her arm around her shoulder.

"Sorry Azula." Azula responded with a snort, standing on her own once Katara lifted her. Toph came up to them, reaching out a hand and gently prodding Azula.

"Man, you she got one heck of a licking."

"No thanks to your friend the snow peasant." Grumbled Azula. Toph chuckled.

"Don't tell me Sugar Queen's gotten all tough now?"

"Well, apparently she likes to use brands." Said Azula, looking over at Katara. The waterbender rubbed the back of her neck, wishing desperately to be out of the tunnel and away from Azula.

"Brands? Well that would explain the smell. Geesh Katara, I guess I don't' want to be on your bad side."

"Let's just focus on getting out of here, okay?" Said Katara, moving ahead of them and peering around the corner of the tunnel. Toph came up behind her, shrugging her shoulders.

"Whatever you say Sugar Queen." Katara suppressed a groan, quickly growing tired of her nickname. She had somehow idealized the adventures she had shared with the earthbender, blocking out how annoying she could really be. Apparently it only took two minutes to remember.

"Is the path clear?" Toph walked forward.

"Let's find out." Katara groaned, following her little friend with Azula tailing behind.

The three girls made their way down the tunnel, sunlight soon shining at its end.

"This to Meathead and the way out." Said Toph, about to move ahead. Suddenly the light died, a wall of pitch darkness submerging the entire mouth of the tunnel. Katara jumped back, shocked at the sudden change. She felt the earth tremble beneath her, shaking with a terrifying violence. Something fierce was going down, and it lay right in their path.

"Toph, what did you leave behind?" Toph took a step back, flashes of red now coming out from the opening.

"Just your idiot for a brother, he went back for some odd reason or another." Azula came hobbling up, laying a hand on the cavern wall to keep herself up.

"Joshua found him." Katara turned, looking at the firebenders intrigued face.

"Joshua found him? Then we need to help!" She said, moving to charge ahead and help out Sokka. Toph stepped in front of her, reaching out a palm and ramming it in her chest, pushing her back.

"Not so fast Sugar Queen. I think this is something Meathead needs to take on by himself." Katara leaned over with her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath. Toph's palm strike had done a little more than stop her.

"I'd have to agree with the mud-wrestler on this one snow peasant. I'd rather not get involved in a spirit battle." Katara straightened up, looking over at Azula.

"What do you mean spirit battle?" Azula raised a black eyebrow, her golden eyes flashing with their usual condescending attitude.

"Well the battle for dominance over the spirit of course. What else do you think Sokka would be doing facing down Joshua?" Katara blinked, at a lost.

"What in the world does that mean?" She demanded. Azula sighed, wincing as she leaned up against the cold stone.

"We don't exactly have time for me to explain. If we want to escape it'd be best to leave now."

"How?" Asked Toph. "I'm all for leaving Sokka to get charred by some demon but that's kind of our only way out." Finished the girl, pointing an ivory finger covered in dirt down the tunnel. Azula laughed.

"You people have no creativity. A cave has many routes." Azula then proceeded to turn back around and open a door, moving in without waiting for the others. After standing silently for a moment, Toph followed, passing by Katara without so much as a word. The waterbender stood there, staring ahead back to the raging battle taking place. Bolts of red, grey, and black streaked about, thundering down the tunnel and ringing in her ears. Sokka was in danger, she knew it. Heck, anyone would know it, they would just have to look over at the wall of evil that was seeping down the tunnel to know it. The problem was, she was not so sure that she could help. Maybe if she rushed in she would just make things worse, like that time she was taking on Hama and Aang and Sokka came to 'help'. But then again he might be in desperate need, on the last limb of his struggle before Joshua crushed him. What was she to do?

Giving one last look to the door where Toph and Azula had disappeared, she began her way over. Coming to the door, she grabbed the knob, closing it shut with a gentle shove. She would have blocked it if she could, but there was nothing she could do, so instead she merely turned around and began walking to the blackness. With each step she took fear seized hold of her, dancing about in her chest. Everything in her was telling her to flee, to get as far away from the evil that lay in wait, but she couldn't. This was the power of love, not just to walk through hell for someone, but to take their place. And if it was necessary, she would take Sokka's place in whatever screwed up world he was in in order to free him.

Coming to the very edge of the night she reached out a hand, touching it. A jolt of pure emotions rushed through her whole body, tingling on her skin as it raced around and around. It felt like power, raw, and unbridled. She felt like she could do anything, take on anyone, crush whomever she wished, then the second wave hit her. It filled her with hatred, spite, envy, and anger. She began to wonder why it was she was trying to help out her dumb-nut brother. What had he ever done for her besides be a nuisance? She had always been the one washing the clothes, cooking the meals, and cleaning. All he ever did was play soldier, running around with his stupid boomerang as he pretended like he was actually useful to society. Even when they were fighting the Fire-Nation he hadn't done much, aside provide some comedy relief every now and again. Toph was right she should let Sokka deal with this on his own; the moron.

Retracting her hand, the power and emotion rushed out, making her stumble backwards. She caught her breath, shaking as she stood up. What had just happened? That cloud, it had corrupted her emotions, made them bitter and vile. How had it done that?

She rolled her eyes. Vengeful spirit, remember? She smacked herself on the head, shaking her head. How had she missed that again?

"Well then mister spirit, I'm up to your game. I can play too." She said. With one last deep breath she dashed into the black night, the waves of power and hate immediately falling upon her. She fought them off, struggling forward. It felt as if she was inside a living thing, warm sticky feelings pressing in around her and slowing her progress, but still she moved on.

Looking around, she tried to find her brother, but it was not like looking in a normal fog. The colors were constantly changing, shifting and flashing, red and yellow and orange. Noise crackled all around, loud snaps and low rumbles, shaking the ground. She tried to call out to Sokka, but even screaming at the top of her lungs she could not hear herself. She was going to have to just find him.

Moving as fast as she could, she searched the mist, feeling that the room had somehow gotten a lot larger since the last time she had been there. It felt like she had been searching for almost ten minutes and still she found nothing, only a growing sense of hatred building inside her chest. She was beginning to think once more of ditching her brother, leaving him to his fate inside this cave. Why should she stick her nose out for him?

Right as she moved to leave him a thought broke upon her mind. The image of Sokka in grief, mourning of some lost friend. He sat on his knees weeping at the base of a cherry tree, a figure swinging gently in the breeze. Katara froze, recalling the image of Suki hung in the tree. It frightened her, but it also swelled her with pity. Sokka had been through so much, carrying it all inside. When had she ever tried to talk to him about it? Or ask him if he was really okay? All she had been concerned with in the past six months was his raucous behavior and how it reflected back on their family. Sure there were times she had actually been concerned about his lost, like back at the lake, but they were too far and in between. How could she, his loving sister, leave him now in his greatest time of need? Sokka would do anything for her, there was no way she was leaving.

So, with renewed courage, she turned back around, realizing in that moment she was completely lost anyways and would not be able to find her way back even if she wanted to. Well, who cared, she was still going to find her brother.

Taking a step forward, she ran into someone, knocking them over. Immediately there was a large snap and the night abated. Glowing rays of golden sunlight flooded into the cavern, blinding her. She shook herself, her hand resting on someone's rising and falling chest.

"Sokka?" She mumbled, looking at her brother's blurry form. She got up to her knees, shaking him by the shoulders.

"Sokka wake up! It's me, Katara!" The boy's eyes remained shut, his head laying against the stone floor. His breath did not stir as his sister tried to raise him from slumber, so eventually she decided on moving him herself.

"Come on big brother, we're getting out of here." Squatting down, she wrapped her brother's arm around her shoulder, picking up his knee and throwing it around her back. With a grunt she lifted him up off the ground, swaying slightly as the weight came crashing down on her. Eventually, though, she gained her footing, and she started off down the tunnel away from the cave. There was, however, one small problem to her plan. A figure standing over by the tunnel, calmly looking at his nails. He brushed back his blonde hair, a sinister smile on his lips.

"O dear. It seems that you're running off with my prey. I'm sorry darling, but I can't let you go." Katara stopped. She had forgotten about Joshua. Of course he was going to be around to screw things up, it was basically his job.

"Joshua, please. If you really want to earn my trust, let me leave with him." Joshua seemed to mull things over in his mind for a moment, then he dipped his head, stepping to the side and motioning her on.

"Very well my dear." Hesitantly, she started forward. She eyed the villain the entire time she was walking, but he did not move to stop her. Nor did he come after her once she was deep within the tunnel.

Katara wondered around the tunnels for a while, struggling beneath the weight of Sokka. She did not stop, however, following some strange intuitive sense that led her down one tunnel after another, all of them leading up. Eventually she came across sunlight once more, blinking as she stepped out of the tunnel into the last dying lights of sunset. A wind whipped past her, blowing her sweat soaked hair up into her face. Sokka coughed on her back.

"Sokka?" She laid him down on the cold stone, running a hand across his forehead. He opened up his eyes, his pupils filling the entire expanse of his iris for a moment, frightening her. It disappeared, leaving her brother's normal face.

"Sokka, what's happening?" She asked. Sokka blinked.

"Well then, you are prettier in person."


End file.
